MADRID, Spain.- In the early hours of this Monday, May 8, the fire was extinguished untied on Sunday night in an area near the Moa Diesel Power Plant, Holguín province.
According to the official media, the flames were sustained for more than 12 hours due to the drought that has persisted for more than four months and the influence of the winds.
The fire, for which the causes were not specified, threatened the safety of the fuel tanks that bordered the area of the fire, which raised fears of an incident like the one that occurred in August 2022 at the Matanzas Supertanker Base.
As explained by Major Ernesto Williams Caballero, head of the fire command in Moa, this was the most dangerous action he has carried out in recent years.
Caballero reported that during the dry period, which extends between the months of January and May, in the Moa region, the main nickel producer in Cuba, between two and three fires occur a week.
For this reason, the fire chief called for “assuming responsible behaviors when traveling through the La Vaca beach area, avoiding throwing cigarette butts, creating ignition points and burning crop waste, which could cause damage to the economy, nature and population.
So far this year, more than a hundred forest fires have been registered in Cuba. While between January and May 2022, 284 forest fires were reported on the island, with an estimated affectation of 1,876 hectares of forests and 1,308 of marsh grasslands.
The Cuban Ranger Corps estimates that by 2023 between 320 and 445 forest fires will occur in the country, which could affect from 4,300 to 6,000 hectares.
