On Saturday, the fire broke out near the town of Montefero, then spread more than 50 kilometers towards the province of Uglistra. The fires have not yet been put out and are being fought by 7,500 firefighters, volunteers and civil defense representatives with the support of the Red Cross, police and policemen. A dozen or so aircraft are involved in the work. France announced sending more.
The fight with the element is very difficult, because the situation is complicated by strong winds. More than 1,500 people have been evacuated since Saturday in other towns near Oristano. 20,000 hectares of forests, olive groves and crops were burned. Homes and farms were destroyed. In Cogliari, an olive tree about two thousand years old was destroyed by fire.
The Sardinian government intends to ask the government to declare a state of natural disaster and to indicate that it is not yet possible to estimate the losses. The scale of the fires around Oristano is enormous, Italian media confirm.
“The Nakba, Sadness, and Despair”
“This is a catastrophe, sadness and despair over the devastation we have suffered,” Diego Loyi, mayor of Santo Lossurgio, told the media.
The local civil defense admitted that the weather conditions make the operation difficult due to the strong winds blowing. The fire hazard in this part of Sardinia has been described as “extreme”.
