MOSCOW: A forest fire on the Spanish island of Tenerife has raged out of control and spread to more than 1.8 hectares (4.4 acres), Canary Islands President Fernando Clavijo said on Thursday, reported Sputnik.

On Wednesday, local authorities announced the start of the evacuation of several villages on the island due to the wildfire.

“We are speaking of 1,600 hectares by 6.00 pm local time (1700 GMT Wednesday) and possibly another 200 hectares damaged by the fire within a 22-kilometre [13.7-mile] perimeter,“ Clavijo said at a joint briefing with the island’s emergency services, adding that some 270 firefighters were battling the blaze.

In late July, media reported that fires had affected over 400 hectares of forest on the island of Gran Canaria in the Canary Islands. –Bernama