A forest fire which burned for some five hours and forced the temporary closure of the Murcia – Madrid rail link was probably caused by a hot stone launched by a passing train.
The fire, which was reported to the emergency services at 4.30pm on Saturday afternoon, destroyed five hectares of countryside alongside the railway track near the Bayo reservoir in Calasparra.
Fire fighters and helicopters from Murcia and Albacete were mobilized in order to extinguish the fire and two brigades remained in the area over night in case the flames rekindled.
The Murcia – Madrid train service was suspended for some three hours due to the proximity of the flames to the railway track. The service resumed at 7.24pm.
The Mayor of Calasparra, Jesus Navarro, has declared that the cause of the fire was probably a hot stone launched by a passing train combined with the extremely high temperatures.
The region of Murcia has been on high alert for the risk of fire for the past two weeks and fires have broken out over the weekend in Cartagena and Águilas.
