Forest fires in the north and north west of the island of Tenerife in the Canary Islands have destroyed farms and potato and tomato production land.

First reports from the island on the fires that were started at the weekend, but burned until Wednesday, were patchy, but indicated that farms and growers’ homes had been destroyed, as well as leaving land severely burned.

“It is not just the flames, but also the very high temperatures that have caused damage,” a spokeswoman for the association of farmers and growers, Asaga, told FPJ. “The largest commercial tomato-production areas are in the south, and it is the north and north west ravaged so far.”

So far, some 13,000 hectares have been affected on Tenerife and 20,000ha on Gran Canaria. The fires are thought to have been started deliberately.

Topics