Nearly 1,800 residents return home after Benahavis / Estepona wildfire containment

Almost 1,800 people out of around 2,000 evacuated have now returned to their properties following the urban-forest blaze that broke out on Thursday, July 9, in the areas of Estepona and Benahavis. Emergency services confirm the fire shows no active flames or fronts, with crews focusing efforts on perimeter security and cooling hotspots.

Evacuation updates across affected areas

Residents from Los Flamingos (1,013 people), Parque Botanico (687 individuals), and the Four Seasons complex (96 occupants) have returned to their places of residence. Preventive measures keep 257 others displaced, including 132 from Marbella Hills and 125 from Caserias del Esperonal. Confinement orders remain in place for 370 people in the Montemayor urbanisation.

Support services for those affected

The Benahavis local council opened the local sports centre to temporarily house displaced individuals. Cruz Roja set up around 50 beds there. Only about ten residents used this facility so far because most stayed with family, friends, or in nearby hotels.

#IFEstepona tomada minutos después de iniciado el incendio se ha propagado a gran velocidad. Nos han desalojado preventivamente de la zona de Parque Botánico. #IFBenahavis pic.twitter.com/vRvaMyhhra

— rikrdo (@rikrdo1979) July 9, 2026

Ongoing firefighting efforts

A coordinated team of 122 ground personnel, 12 fire engines, and one light helicopter continues operations to secure the zone. The provincial fire consortium from Malaga deployed 23 firefighters with 12 vehicles, plus eight on standby. Ten firefighters and five vehicles came from Estepona station, with others from Fuengirola, Marbella, Mijas, and Benalmadena.

Road and emergency response details

The AP-7 motorway reopened to traffic after closure between kilometres 1,054 and 1,070 towards Cadiz. Patricia Navarro, the Junta de Andalucia government delegate in Malaga, monitored developments from the advanced command post at Llano de la Ermita, run by GREA.

#Bomberos de #Marbella llevan desde ayer a primera hora trabajando intensamente en el #IFBenahavís. Hoy seguimos! 💪💪 pic.twitter.com/QPSXnl3jyl

— Ricardo Martín ۞ (@RicardoBonela) July 10, 2026

Emergency services handled nearly 300 calls about the incident. Initial alerts arrived around 4.30pm on Thursday, reporting flames starting on the AP-7 verge at kilometre 1,068 before spreading into trees near Montemayor.

Coordinators activated multiple agencies, including the Infoca provincial centre, Malaga provincial firefighters, Marbella crews, Guardia Civil, local police from Estepona and Benahavis, national police, road maintenance, Cruz Roja, health emergency units, and civil protection volunteers.

Antonio Sanz of the Junta de Andalucia, as Infoca director, raised the alert to operational level 1 at 5.30pm on the Thursday past due to the blaze’s rapid spread. This level applies when standard resources can handle the fire but extra protections become essential for residents.