Pradela wildfire in León flares up again after brief stabilization, 10 residents confined
After a morning lull, the Pradela wildfire in León province reactivated Saturday evening, prompting authorities to raise its severity level and confine ten residents of nearby Cela village while overnight crews battle the flames.
Reactivation after morning lull
The Pradela forest fire, which had been declared stabilized on Saturday morning after days of firefighting, reignited in the evening, forcing the regional emergency agency CECOPI to elevate its severity classification to level 2 (IGR-2) due to new threats to inhabited areas. Earlier in the day, 17 wildfires across León province had been extinguished and the fire was thought to be under control, but fresh secondary outbreaks changed the outlook. Ten residents of the nearby village of Cela were confined as a precaution, though authorities said there was no immediate danger to the population after a controlled burn using technical fire.
- Lightning strike starts Pradela wildfire
- Congosto wildfire begins from lightning
- Morning: Pradela declared stabilized; 17 wildfires extinguished across León
- Evening: Pradela reactivates, severity raised to IGR-2; 50 personnel deployed overnight
Overnight firefighting deployment
With the renewed activity, the overnight firefighting device was adjusted to 16 resources, including nine ground crews, three bulldozers, two pumpers, environmental agents and a technician. A total of 50 personnel remained on the scene to prevent further flare-ups. The regional environment ministry emphasized that the fire perimeter was secured but hot spots could still appear inside the already burned area. During Saturday daytime, as many as 34 means had worked on this fire.
Congosto and other active fires
Congosto, another lightning-caused blaze that started on 25 June, remained at severity level IGR-1. Its extinction is proving difficult due to steep, rocky terrain and a large perimeter, with 36 firefighting resources still deployed there. The fires of Vega de Valcarce and San Vicente were stabilized. The regional government kept Situación Operativa 1 active for the first time this season, a measure triggered by the high simultaneity of fires in León province.
Background: a week of lightning fires
The outbreak began on 24 June when dry thunderstorms ignited multiple fires across León. At the peak, 13 active fires were recorded. Pradela, one of the earliest starts, had been in IGR-1 until Saturday morning, then briefly stabilized before the evening reactivation. By late Saturday, the number of active fires had dropped to five, and 17 had been extinguished, though Pradela and Congosto remained the most worrying.
