Level 4 declared for forest fire risk in Mallorca and Menorca: it is forbidden to light fires in any open space and fire authorisations are suspended.

In Ibiza and Formentera, a level 3 forest fire risk has been declared, and fire authorisations are also suspended for today.

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Very complicated weather conditions

The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and the Environment, through the Balearic Institute of Nature (IBANAT), recalls that much of the Balearic Islands will be at extreme risk over the next few days due to weather conditions. In detail, Fire Alert 4 has been declared in Mallorca and Menorca, and Fire Alert 3 in Ibiza and Formentera, a situation that is expected to be the norm over the next few days, even weeks, especially while this episode of extreme temperatures lasts.

For this reason, today and tomorrow in Mallorca and Menorca it is forbidden to light fires in any open space and fire authorisations are suspended. This means that fires may not be lit in recreational areas, nor is the use of pyrotechnic material or machinery and equipment that generate deflagration, sparks or electrical discharges permitted.

It should be remembered that the regulations on the use of fire have recently been updated to bring them into line with state regulations. Thus, the website alertafoc.caib.es publishes, on a daily basis and throughout the year, maps with the alert levels for the meteorological risk of forest fires on the different islands, in accordance with the information and warnings published by the State Meteorological Agency (AEMET) and the danger analysis carried out by the Forest Management Service and the Forest Fire Communications Centre.

The alerts are divided into:

• Fire Alert 1: Low meteorological risk of forest fire from AEMET, and without warnings for adverse meteorological phenomena.
• Fire Alert 2: Meteorological risk of moderate or high forest fire from AEMET, and without warnings due to adverse meteorological phenomena.
• Fire Alert 3: Formal activation of warnings for adverse meteorological phenomena (winds, maximum temperatures, heat waves or storms), regardless of the AEMET forest fire risk, or when there are unique circumstances based on the hazard analysis.
• Fire Alert 4: Very high or extreme wildfire weather risk, or when there are unique circumstances from the hazard analysis, regardless of the existence of severe weather warnings applicable to the alert level.

The danger maps are updated on a territorial basis, by region (in the case of Mallorca) or by island.

So far this year, a total of 64 forest fires have been recorded in the Balearic Islands, burning a total of 18.57 hectares, the vast majority of which are wooded (12.67 ha). Sixty-six per cent of the fires were concentrated on the island of Mallorca and 27% on Ibiza. Menorca and Formentera recorded a much smaller number of forest fires, accounting for 5% and 3% of the incidents, respectively.

The Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Natural Environment ask the public to exercise extreme caution, to refrain from carrying out activities likely to generate a forest fire and to consult updated information on the risk of forest fires on the website alertafoc.caib.es and through Ibanat’s social networks.