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The
fire's perimeter expanded to 31 kilometers (19 miles) across dry
woodland covering both flanks of steep ravines near the Mount
Teide volcano - Spain's highest peak - hampering access to the
area and covering much of the island with smoke clouds and ash.
The fire, which broke out on Wednesday, has burned through 2,600
hectares (6,425 acres) of land.
"The night has been very tough...This is the most complex fire
we've had in the Canary Islands in the last 40 years," the
region's leader, Fernando Clavijo, told a news conference.
Pedro Martinez, head of emergency services in Tenerife, said the
fire had spread to the north and towards a valley where several
camping sites are located.
While some villages were evacuated out of precaution, residents
in a few others were ordered to stay home, affecting a further
3,500 people.
A prison and a migrant reception centre were in the areas under
confinement, Clavijo said.
Civil protection removed 1,294 people from their homes in the
municipality of El Rosario and 1,525 from areas of La Orotava on
Thursday, with total evacuations reaching 3,800 people.
Authorities deployed 17 aircraft and a combined 350 firefighters
and military personnel. Additional water bombing aircraft
arrived from the mainland.
All access to the mountains on the island, including
tourist-favorite Mount Teide, has been closed off to prevent any
incidents.
Tenerife's two airports were operating normally, Spanish airport
operator Aena said.
Last week, a heatwave in the Canary Islands left many areas bone
dry, heightening the risk of wildfires.
This summer, firefighters have extinguished a series of forest
fires on the islands of Gran Canaria and La Palma, which form
part of the Canary Islands archipelago.
(Writing by Andrei Khalip; editing by Christina Fincher)
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