Shooting club backs members accused with starting fire

THE shooting club at the heart of investigations into the fire which ravaged large areas of Montes de Malaga in August is rallying behind its members.

Seven men belonging to the Guadalmedina Olympic Shooting Club have been charged with starting the fire which blazed through 270 hectares of Natural Park on August 10.

A police investigation has determined that the flames originated from sparks caused by bullets hitting rocks in the club’s firing range.

Club members, however, are calling for a second investigation into the fire’s causes.

Agapito Sanchidrián, a representative for the Andalucían Federation of Olympic Shooting, said: “The shooting range meets all safety requirements.

“It is utterly impossible that a bullet could leave the range and cause a fire like this.”