You might have heard in the news that the Canary Islands (especially Gran Canaria and La Gomera) have suffered some bad forest fires recently! What made it so awful was that we had temperatures of 50ºC and high winds so the fires spread worrying quickly. We had ashes in the air and people couldn’t even cool off in swimming pools because they were black with ash.
Photo By Elesar1
If you are thinking of visiting Gran Canaria, don’t worry because all the fires are out now (phew!) after six days, but a lot of the island has been affected, especially Palmitos Park, which is going to be closed for 8 to 12 months. 60% of the animals and plants died and all the exotic birds had to be released. So far I haven’t spotted any colourful birds in the skies and my cat is still bringing in lizards and mice rather than parrots or eagles (probably just as well).
The fire was started by a disgruntled park warden whose contract was coming to an end. He set the blaze going in the hopes it would be minor and his contract would be extended. He is now in jail and lots of people (especially the 76, including the Mayor, whose houses are burnt to the ground) are hoping he will stay there for some time!
The fires in La Gomera and Tenerife were forest fires and I’ve heard that Greece and Bulgaria have been having similar problems. Things like this happen from time to time but there is always a lot of team spirit and everyone here pulls together in times of crisis (which are thankfully few and far between!)
