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Murcia Residents Evacuated As Fire Rekindles – Arson Being Considered
Murcia in flames. Credit: 112rmurcia X
Emergency services have been dealing with a rekindled fire on the embankment of the Segura River in the La Arboleja area of Murcia on Saturday, June 20 in the afternoon. Nearly 100 calls reached the regional 112 emergency coordination centre, alerting crews to the incident in the riverbank zone.
Officials said the flames had reignited in a location previously affected by a midday fire which local firefighters had appeared to extinguish and which then spread to both sides of the Segura River nearing residential zones. Local police evacuated some homes as witnesses described palm trees and houses on fire in the El Malecon district behind the Maristas around 3.40pm.
Rapid mobilisation of firefighting resources
The speed and intensity of the fire advance led regional authorities to request two helicopters from the security and emergencies directorate. One helicopter took off from Alcantarilla and another from the Sierra de la Pila base. Twenty-one local firefighters responded initially in fire engines from Murcia to the grassland fire. Three forest brigades joined crews at the scene while local police cordoned areas to safeguard residents and bystanders. Crews focused first on the right bank in Rincon de Seca, where the fire advanced more forcefully, and on the left bank in La Arboleja.
Ash cloud reaches Alcantarilla
Strong winds have carried ash from the fire to nearby Alcantarilla. Several calls from Alcantarilla residents reached the emergency centre reporting heavy ash fall due to the fire. Neighbourhood associations pointed to dry stubble and vegetation filling empty plots in Barriomar as a factor behind recurring fires one year on.
Memories of Los Garres fire resurface
Huge smoke columns rose and stayed visible from kilometres away, alarming residents in an area still recovering from the Los Garres fire. That blaze destroyed nearly 200 hectares and forced evacuations of neighbours as a precaution. Authorities do not believe this El Malecon incident involves a serial arsonist based on initial reports, though the cause is still under investigation. Crews from multiple agencies continued work in the zone to control the fire as Saturday evening approached.
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