Three lightning-sparked wildfires burn in Castellón as UME deploys and 1,000 residents stay confined

Outbreak and cause

Three wildfires remained active on Saturday morning in the interior of Castellón province, in the comarca of l'Alt Maestrat and surrounding areas, after breaking out on the afternoon and evening of Friday, 7 August. The fires affect the municipalities of Serra d'en Galcerán (Sierra Engarcerán), Tírig, and Culla. A fourth fire in La Salzadella was extinguished within hours. According to the Associació Valenciana de Meteorologia (AVAMET), the origin points to a lightning strike during electrical storms accompanied by a heat burst with wind gusts exceeding 70 km/h. The Consorcio Provincial de Bomberos de Castellón described the scenario as a situation of simultaneous fires requiring extraordinary resources.

Emergency response and alert levels

The Generalitat Valenciana declared situation 2 of the Plan Especial Frente al Riesgo de Incendios Forestales (PEIF), the level reserved for fires that may severely affect populations and require extraordinary means. By Saturday morning, the Serra d'en Galcerán fire had been downgraded to level 1, while the Tírig fire was elevated to situation 2, prompting the Generalitat to request UME deployment there. A Cecopi meeting convened at 09:00 on Saturday at the Puesto de Mando Avanzado (PMA), attended by government delegate Pilar Bernabé, emergency conseller Juan Carlos Valderrama, and Generalitat president Juanfran Pérez Llorca. The PMA is being relocated to Tírig, where most aerial resources are now operating.

Evacuations and confinements

The Centro de Coordinación de Emergencias sent an Es-Alert message ordering residents of Sierra Engarcerán to remain indoors, close doors, windows, and ventilation, and turn off air conditioning and extractors. Approximately 1,000 residents remain confined. During Friday night, the Guardia Civil evacuated 91 people from masías (isolated farmhouses) in the Sierra Engarcerán area. Eleven of them, identified by conseller Valderrama as tourists staying in local masías, were taken to the sports center in Els Ibarsos. Bernabé said the 91 evacuees are expected to return to their homes as soon as possible, with the tourists returning progressively.

Resources deployed

As of Saturday, 17 aerial means are operating across the three active fires, alongside 150 ground personnel. Of these, 120 belong to the Diputación Provincial de Castellón and the Generalitat Valenciana, and 30 are from the Unidad Militar de Emergencias (UME), specifically the Third Battalion. The ground deployment also includes three URAF teams, eight additional firefighting units, 20 forest firefighting units from the Generalitat, six command and coordination units, a forest technician, and an articulated supply truck. Medical, security, and prevention teams are also collaborating.

Fire progression and ground conditions

In Sierra Engarcerán, the affected area is 45 hectares with a 4-kilometer perimeter, and evolution is favorable. In Culla, the fire is described as good and without advance, and is now stabilized. In Tírig, the fire showed no overnight evolution but remains the most active of the three. A forest firefighter in Tírig published a video on Instagram denouncing insufficient resources, stating that a tongue of fire had cut their water line and burned their installation.

The fire is getting away from us. We lack personnel.

Meanwhile, a separate fire in Niebla (Huelva) was also elevated to situation 2, with UME support activated there as well.