Due to a wet winter, stimulating the growth of plants and trees, combined with a long, hot summer season, the risk of forest fires in Málaga province was, and still is, considered to be extremely high, but according to the latest figures, 2010 could prove to be a record low as far as fire damage is concerned.
The summer season, for statistical purposes, runs until October 15th, but so far this summer there have only been 18 actual fires with a total of 62.3 hectares of land destroyed. Only 1.6 hectares of this has been trees, the rest has been scrub land.
This makes the summer of 2010 a record low in terms of forest fires and trees destroyed, the previous low being 30 hectares back in 1968.
The worst year ever for forest fires in the province was 1975 when 22,767 hectares went up in flames, followed by 1991 when the total was 12,275 hectares.
However, particularly since the turn of the century, the incidence of forest fires, particularly serious ones, has been on the decline, as has the amount of forest destroyed by such fires.
Public awareness, improvements in firefighting techniques, the preparation and cleaning and clearing of forest areas have all contributed to this decline.
This year, the budget for fire prevention in the province was €22.5 million, four more than last year, and over 600 personnel, ground and air, are now employed.