Fire-fighters on Tuesday brought under control a massive fire in central Spain that killed 11 volunteer firemen and destroyed vast tracts of pine forest, officials said. Investigators meanwhile focused their probe on five youths from Madrid accused of sparking the fire Saturday by lighting a barbecue despite being warned of the risk.
The youths were being questioned by local police in a location that was being kept secret amid fears that the youths might be subjected to reprisals by the local population, police said. The blaze, fuelled by strong winds, has swept through the drought-stricken province of Guadalajara, forcing the evacuation of hundreds of people from several villages and a resort.
Water-bombing planes were back in action on Tuesday in the stricken areas, but fire-fighters had finally managed to bring the blaze under control, an environment ministry official in the town of Mazarete told AFP. A municipal employee was quoted in Spanish newspapers Tuesday as having warned the youths not to light their barbecue in the pine forest.
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