The two-week heat wave brought extreme fire risk to Galicia and now Ourense province is on fire. 10% of it, 727 square kilometers, has already burned. The fires of Chandrexa and Maceda merged and is now the biggest fire ever on record. Neighbors are organizing volunteer groups via WhatsApp and some villages are left alone to battle the flames, without any firefighters. Many are feeling useless given the situation.
forest fires
Considering the Eucalypt
It’s hard to ignore the ubiquity of eucalyptus in Galicia, especially on the coast. Introduced to and spread throughout the region as a cash crop for paper pulp, a eucalypt plantation is low-maintenance and fast-growing. It’s also notoriously fire-prone and a scourge for autochthonous flora and fauna. With so many Galicians having emigrated to other countries or the cities, agricultural labor is sparse in the rural areas and it’s easy to see why land owners would plant it.
Forest fires, usually intentionally set, worry many in the area. Most of Galicia has been under “extreme” fire risk for the last few days. There are even Twitter accounts to monitor bombeiro activity.
This forestry map was shared by journalist David Lombao on Twitter. The provinces with the least eucalyptus are Lugo and Ourense.
