The presumed leader of a forest fire that has covered 1,500 hectares since Saturday on the Spanish island of Gran Canaria was placed on Tuesday in custody, AFP learned from a judicial source. "He is accused of a possible offense of fire and (the judge) ordered the detention on remand," told AFP a spokesman for the judicial authority in the Canaries, adding that "only negligence is for the 'time considered' as the cause of the fire. Arrested on Saturday, he will be able according to this spokesman to be released against the payment of a deposit.
The fire still not mastered
The fire, according to local authorities of a welding machine in the municipality of Artenara, in the interior of the island of Gran Canaria, has affected nearly 1,500 hectares. Tuesday in the afternoon, he was no longer progressing but was still not under the control of firefighters and was therefore likely to leave again if the wind rose, which is not foreseen by the meteorologists, indicated the services of urgency of the Canary Islands. "If the forecasts are confirmed in the night, it could be controlled Wednesday morning," said the president of the archipelago, Angel Victor Torres.
Some 1,000 inhabitants of villages in the interior of the island that had to be evacuated were able to return to their homes but tourist excursions remained prohibited in the area, according to a statement from the regional government of the Canary Islands. Spain, the world's second-largest tourist destination, is affected each summer by numerous forest fires because of its arid climate.