2,000 evacuated as Tenerife forest fire rages

Raging forest fires have led to the evacuation of 2,000 people from a town in the centre of Spain’s popular tourist island of Tenerife.

Residents were evacuated from Vilaflor on the fringe of the Teide National Park last night, said emergency services spokeswoman Carmina Lorenzo.

She said the park itself is not under threat.

The fires are not close to the main coastal tourist resort areas.

Ms Lorenzo said firefighters are using 20 water-carrying planes and helicopters to try to put out the three-day-old blaze that has affected 5,000 acres of land.

Smaller fires are also raging on the nearby islands of La Palma and La Gomera.