Firefighters are working to extinguish a wildfire that has spread rapidly in parts of southwestern Sardinia, destroying 20,000 hectares (50,000 acres) of forest and forcing 1,500 people to evacuate their homes.
Many agricultural businesses and private property were damaged by the fire that started in Oristano on Saturday.
The European Union sent four firefighting aircraft on Sunday, including two Air Canada aircraft provided by France, to support 11 aircraft to extinguish the fires raging in the vicinity of 13 cities and towns. Efforts were hindered by strong and hot winds.
The Sardinian newspapers described the fire as “the end of the world”, and its losses were equivalent to or likely to exceed those caused by the wildfires of 1983 and 1994.
Over the weekend, about 400 people were evacuated from their homes in the small town of Scano di Montiferro, and hundreds more were evacuated from the towns and villages of Santu Lussurgiu, Cuglieri, Sennariolo, Tresnuraghes, Magomadas, Flussio and Tinnura.
“I put my family in the car and we escaped,” said Carlo Inzis, the owner of an auto parts company in Culieri New Sardinia newspaper. “First we went to Sennariolo, then Macomer, then Bosa… Essentially, we were fleeing all night.”
Livio and Anna Sias told a similar story: “There are seven of us in the car…there is a flame in front of our house-they are taller than a tree.”
People are worried that the fire may spread to the province of Nuoro in western Sardinia. More than 7,000 firefighters and volunteers are working hard to put out the fire.
“The fire continues to be active in different ways. All the available teams are there,” the Oristano Fire Brigade said in a statement on Sunday.
The local authorities declared a “disaster state” because they sought funds from the central government to repair losses and support those affected by the economy. “We need an immediate support plan,” Sardinia President Christian Solinas said.
