See more Daily Mail on Google - save us as a Preferred SourceBy ELEANOR MANN Published: 19:05 BST, 3 July 2026 | Updated: 19:15 BST, 3 July 2026
The Mediterranean tourist hotspot Costa Brava is on a wildlife alert, as a fire has engulfed the popular coastal region. Videos shared to social media show fire ripping through a wooded area and creating rare 'fire clouds' pillowing into the sky, as 200 firefighters have been deployed to battle the blaze. Thousands have been confined to their homes since Friday morning, and there are lockdowns in place in the city of Calonge and town Sant Antoni. The blaze started in the morning near the municipality of La Bisbal d'Emporda in the northeastern region of Catalonia, around 12 miles from a picturesque coastline usually full of summer holidaymakers. Strong winds whipped up the fire and prompted the regional authorities to ask residents of 10 municipalities to stay at home, including the popular Platja d'Aro beach resort.Footage shared by the Catalan fire service showed helicopters swooping to drop water on the flames amid thick masses of grey and orange smoke billowing from hilly, forested terrain.Catalan fire service chief David Borrell warned: 'The column (of smoke) is very slanted, it has formed a very violent pyrocumulus.' He added: 'The difficulty is that it will not be static'. More than 200 firefighters have been deployed, including aerial resources, the service said. Costa Brava is on a wildlife alert after a fire engulfed the popular coastal region Video shared on social media showed a wooded region in flames Rare 'fire clouds', massive clouds formed when wildfires give off extreme heat, were also visibleIt advised the population to help by avoiding travel to the area, which is a common weekend getaway for Barcelona residents. Catalan leader Salvador Illa requested the intervention of the army's emergencies unit as the wind made conditions worse. Spain is on the front line of climate change, which scientists say increases the intensity, frequency and duration of the extreme heat that fuels wildfires. Deadly wildfires devoured almost 400,000 hectares of land in the country last year, the highest figure recorded by the European Forest Fire Information System.
