Blaze rages out of control in Arroyo Las Casillas, Vélez-Málaga

Flames are advancing unchecked through the Arroyo Las Casillas area in Vélez-Málaga, just a week after the wildfire campaign began in the province of Málaga.

The regional wildfire response service, Plan Infoca, has confirmed via social media that the fire is currently active — the term used when a blaze is out of control and may have one or several fronts.

Efforts to contain the fire involve a heavy helicopter, two groups of forest firefighters, a reinforcement brigade from the Andalusian regional government (BRICA), an operations technician, an environmental officer and a fire engine.

The wildfire season has begun in Málaga and across Andalusia. With less rainfall, large amounts of dry, uncut undergrowth, and more than a few looking to profit from property development, the conditions are ripe. It seems the right time for the government to respond to firefighters’ demands to preserve their seniority and improve their equipment, vehicles and wages — which currently average around €1,600 a month, well below what their counterparts earn in other European countries.

And summer, the driest season of all, hasn’t even started yet.

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