Zoë Dahse
AS SEVERAL regions in Spain continue to battle wildfires, authorities in Castilla and Leon have closed down a section of the Camino de Santiago pilgrimage route.
The Picos de Europa mountain range has been severely affected, resulting in authorities in the Castilla and Leon region closing the path between the towns of Astorga and Ponferrada, and warning hikers ‘not to put their lives in danger’.
This decision comes after a firefighter died last night in the village of Espinoso de Compludo. As a result of the severe heatwave the severity of the fires in the region has only intensified.
READ MORE: Another firefighter dies battling Spain’s wildfires after fire engine careens down embankment
About 20 wildfires have caused more than 285,000 acres to be damaged by the fires in Galicia and Castilla and Leon.
Defence secretary Margarita Robles told the radio station Cadena SER that ‘this is a fire situation we haven’t experienced in 20 years’, linking the cause to climate change, and noting that the situation was not likely to improve until temperatures cooled down.
The fire has affected train services, resulting in concerned pilgrims being cautious about travel plans. Some worried travellers have expressed their concern on the Camino de Santiago Forum, with one noting that ‘I just saw that the fire has affected train services in Galicia and I’m getting a bit nervous about my upcoming Camino Ingles’.
112 Castilla y Leon, the emergency service provider for the region, urged potential travellers on X to ‘not continue on the route’ and to ‘follow the instructions of authorities’.
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