Spain Is Getting Ready for a Solar Eclipse and a Wildfire Threat at the Same Time
Spain's environment minister Sara Aagesen has warned that wildfires could break out as huge crowds head to the countryside and beaches to watch a total solar eclipse on August 12. A solar eclipse happens when the moon passes between the Earth and the sun, blocking out the sun's light. The country's plants and trees are extremely dry after the hottest July ever recorded. The Guardian
Aagesen gave the warning while visiting Niebla in southern Spain, the site of the country's latest fire. She said even the tiniest spark could start a devastating forest fire. Spain's weather agency AEMET confirmed that July was mainland Spain's hottest month since records began in 1961, and its driest July ever, with only 4.3mm of rain — about a quarter of what normally falls.
The eclipse will pass across Spain in a strip about 200km wide, from A Coruña in the north-west to Mallorca in the Mediterranean. Spain's finance ministry expects 460,000 tourists from other countries to come just for the event. Police think about 1.5 million extra car trips will happen that day, which could block the roads that fire engines and ambulances need to reach rural areas.
Spain has banned parking on the side of highways or near dry plants, and has also banned barbecues and fireworks. The Valencia region has closed its natural parks and stopped people from walking on country paths as a safety measure. Spain's environment ministry published tips for watching the eclipse safely, including a warning that parking on forest roads can block emergency vehicles, and advice to check the daily fire danger level.
Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska led a coordination meeting ahead of the eclipse on August 6, according to Reuters. European Union electricity grid operators have also prepared for the eclipse's impact on power use and solar energy, since the sudden loss of sunlight can reduce solar power output and then cause a spike in demand when the light returns.
Air quality expert Becky Wagner said wildfires in Spain will likely make it harder to see the eclipse clearly and could make the air unhealthy to breathe. Time The World Meteorological Organization said weather conditions have played a big role in the wildfires affecting Spain and other parts of Western Europe.
NASA has set up four powerful telescopes next to an old church in the village of Villalibado in north-west Spain, where it will broadcast the eclipse live to more than 10 million viewers. The agency spent almost a year searching for the perfect spot and chose Villalibado, a village that had been abandoned for decades before being fixed up as a holiday destination.
Spain's hospitals are on alert for people who might damage their eyes by looking at the sun without proper protective glasses. Six brands of eclipse glasses were pulled from sale in Spain after the consumer group FACUA said they were not safe. Jesús Meray, who heads the Fernández-Vega eye research institute, warned that looking directly at the sun can cause permanent eye damage and said people should wear protective glasses before, during, and after the eclipse.
The bigger picture is that Spain is dealing with several problems at once. Record drought, large crowds heading into forest areas, and the need to keep roads clear for emergencies all add up to a situation that officials have decided requires action in advance. Closing parks and banning barbecues, fireworks, and roadside parking shows that authorities think the fire risk is serious enough to justify restrictions even during a big tourism event. The 1.5 million extra car trips expected on August 12 would be a lot for rural roads in normal weather. With the land this dry, those cars also create more chances for a fire to start and could get in the way of firefighters trying to respond.
The eye-safety issue is a separate worry. With six brands of eclipse glasses found to be unsafe, some people may already have bought glasses that do not work properly. Hospitals are preparing for a possible increase in eye injuries. For electricity grid operators, the eclipse brings yet another challenge: the sudden drop and return of sunlight across a wide area tests their ability to keep the power supply steady.
It is not yet clear whether all these preparations will be enough. The combination of extreme drought, huge numbers of visitors, and the wide path of the eclipse means that even a well-prepared emergency response could face fires or other problems in several places at once. The coordination meeting led by Grande-Marlaska on August 6 suggests the Spanish government sees this as a complex operation involving many agencies, not just an ordinary sky-watching event.
