“It would be a lie to say that the forest fire in Cieza had not reached the areas surrounding the Almadenes Canyon,” the Head of the Department of Environment, Ecologists in Action and the national emergency force, UME, have declared.
Despite assurances from the regional government that the flames had not reached the Canyon there are reports that, although the fire did not reach the river, it burned the wall and has put at risk the prehistoric cave drawings.
This morning, Saturday, UME and the fire brigades were still working to extinguish the blaze and were focussing on the area surrounding the Almadenes, which has been declared a Place of Cultural Interest.
“There is an element of preocupation for the cave drawings in the 19 cave shelters, says José Eduardo Illueca, Head of the Department of Environment in Cieza.
He added that a municipal technician of the patrimony would have to carry out a study to estímate the damage.
Confirming that the fire was “under control” he added that it had not been put out. There were still very smokey areas and the area is still combustible, he explained. “Although the situation is much more hopeful than yesterday there is a danger that gusts of wind this afternoon will reignite the flames.
Another regional executive, , María Dolores Pagán, also confirmed that the fire was concentrated in the higher parts of the canyon but had descended the walls and affected four of the cave shelters.
“The canyon has been affected,” she said, “to say anything else would not be true. There are areas that have been burned, but the first night we thought the damage would be much worse. It is also true that when a fire is burning it is difficult to calculate where it will reach.
“The first night was the most dramatic, the forestry officers told us the canyon was burning and some indications were that we would lose it. The next day the message was the opposite and now it is clear that it is true that the Canyon has burned.”
Ecologists in Action declared:” Two of our members have been there and they saw that the canyon was burning. The fire has not reached the river, this is true, but the front wall of the canyon has burned.
