The fire that has been burning since this noon in the Gobla de Puyol Pujol, one of the three channels that connect the Albufera lake with the Mediterranean Sea, has already forced the preventive evacuation of the town of El Saler and the campsites in the area. This measure was taken at the Cecopal meeting, where, in addition, the mobilization of EMT buses for the transfer of residents was approved.
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The City Council has informed that those who have no means of transportation can go to the roundabout where the DGT driving license exams are held to proceed with their evacuation.
In fact, the València City Council has reported that the Alquería del Basket and the Fonteta have been made available for the evacuees. At this time of year, the campsites in the area display a full occupancy sign.
Along these lines, the Generalitat Valenciana, through the Emergency Coordination Center, sent an Es-Alert around 17:20 this Thursday. The message states: “Fire in El Saler. Evacuation of the population center and its campsites along the CV-500 towards Valencia is ordered. Those without their own vehicle must go to the roundabout in front of the DGT exam center for transfer to Font de Sant Lluís and Alqueria del Básquet.”
In addition to the firefighters and aerial resources, the Sideinfo fire cannons of El Saler have been activated preventively, and the CV 500 – known as the Saler highway – has been closed to traffic.
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Around 17:40 hours, units from the Third Emergency Intervention Battalion of the Military Emergency Unit (UME) also arrived in the area to join the missions to extinguish the El Saler forest fire.
The mayor of València, María José Catalá, explained in statements to the media that the fire is active but has not reached the town. Regarding the evacuations, she reported that, in the first evacuation, in one of the towers, there were up to 30 people at the time the fire was declared.
Additionally, the mayor indicated that 120 other people have been evacuated on EMT buses, although she explained that other residents have left the town with their own vehicles. The mayor could not provide figures for those evacuated from the campsites.
According to data provided by David Roca, fire inspector of the València City Council, he showed himself to be “slightly optimistic.” Roca indicated that in a first count, about 48 hectares can be mentioned, but since the fire is still active, it is not yet an official figure.
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