Fires ravage Italian island of Sardinia, forcing evacuations
Fires ravage Italian island of Sardinia, forcing evacuations
Cars are parked by the road as fires have been raging through the countryside in Cuglieri, near Oristano, Sardinia, Italy, Jul 25, 2021. Hundreds of people were evacuated from their homes in many small towns in the province of Oristano, Sardinia, after raging fires burst in the areas of Montiferru and Bonarcado. (Alessandro Tocco/LaPresse via AP)
MILAN: Fires raged Sunday (Jul 25) on Italy's Mediterranean island of Sardinia, where nearly 400 people were evacuated overnight. No deaths or injuries have been reported.
Firefighters said several homes were damaged in the island's western interior region. Civil protection authorities said a preliminary survey indicates 10,000 acres have been consumed by flames around Montiferru, near the centre of Italy’s second-largest island.
Authorities evacuated 200 people from the town of Cuglieri overnight and another 155 from Sennariolo, where flames, according to the mayor, still had not reached residential areas. More than half of those evacuated in Cuglieri were allowed to return home Sunday, the news agency ANSA reported.
Eleven aircraft were working to put out the flames, the head of the island’s civil protection agency, Antonio Belloi, told ANSA.
Efforts were being hampered by hot southwesterly winds, putting the fire danger level at “extreme”.
