The forest fire, which continues to devour all in its way in Tenerife, now covers 14,878 hectares (148 square kilometres), which represents almost half of the forest crown and 7.3% of the total surface area of the island.
Firefighters have managed to stabilise one of the most worrying fronts, that of Izaña in the Teide National Park, and the forecast that the fire will be controlled "in days" is maintained.
According to the reports from the authorities and technicians late last night (Monday) after the coordination meeting of the emergency teams, yesterday's objective was to get the fronts in Izaña and Mal Abrigo areas, both in the vicinity of the National Park, under control, protecting the buildings of the Teide Observatory in doing so.
Izaña was a success, but in Mal Abrigo "there has not been such luck", although the general feeling is that there is a "positive evolution" of the fire and they will stabilise this area today.
The Minister of Territorial Policy of the Canary Islands Government, Manuel Miranda, said that it had been a "tough" day yesterday, with more heat and a light wind that kept changing direction that caused previously controlled hotspots to restart in some areas.
Firefighters continue to work throughout the night tackling the fire in Tenerife.
Critical situation in the water reserves in the southwest of Santa Cruz
The tanks that supply to the upper part of this district only have water until lunchtime today, according to the Santa Cruz City Council, who are asking residents of the area to help by reducing their use of tap water.
They have requested people to reduce water consumption by 20% a day to avoid supply cuts, if not, the water accumulated in the Emmasa tanks that supply the upper part of the southwestern district of Santa Cruz will run out this afternoon.
Tuesday:
Today, the extinguishing work will focus on the area of Güímar, Izaña, and Fasnia where firefighting teams will be expanded to tackle those places that are currently the most worrying as soon as possible. It is expected that the situation will be similar to that of yesterday with favourable weather conditions and a somewhat more controlled fire than in recent days.
A technical meeting will be held this morning to reverse the evacuation situation and allow residents to gradually return to their homes, depending on location, but these people will be recommended to use FFP2 face masks due to the poor air quality.
