Locals and visitors are keeping watch for blazes as authorities maintain a vigilant state of pre-alert(Image: Getty Images)British holidaymakers are being warned over severe dangers in Spain, Greece and Turkey ahead of the busy summer season. Experts have urged tourists to be aware of potentially devastating wildfires which could spread rapidly in popular holiday resorts.
Summer getaways could be at risk as the countries enter wildfire season which could cause chaos and devastation, warned Spanish authorities. A BBC Morning Live pundit raised the alarm claiming a ‘twin threat’ could endanger UK tourists.
Ash Bhardwaj, a travel guru, issued the advice and warned people to be cautious. He said: “We’re entering wildfire season, which peaks in July and August, and some of these places are seeing temperatures that peak at over 50 degrees Celsius.
UK tourists told cancel Spain holidays and those going to Greece and Turkey may have to too“As a place gets drier and hotter, you’re more likely to get wildfires. Over the last five years, 13 per cent of travel insurance claims have been evacuations or related to natural disasters, so this is something that can affect your travel.”
Soaring temperatures, dry conditions and the recent arrival of a calima – dry, dusty winds from the Sahara – have made the islands prone to forest fires, reports Birmingham Live.
In a statement on its website, the local government said: “Given the current climatic, meteorological, and environmental circumstances, having passed the usual period of precipitation in the Canary Islands and, as established in section 2.10 of the INFOCA.
“It is estimated that the conditions are in place to declare a Pre-Alert Situation due to this being a period of medium to high risk of forest fires.”
Spain’s tourism industry is already feeling the pinch due to escalating anti-tourism demonstrations ahead of the peak season.
Protesters in Spain, riled by the strain of mass tourism on housing and services, hit the streets in British holiday hotspots last weekend, brandishing signs demanding tourists to ‘go home’.
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Majorca and Ibiza, usually peaceful escapes for Brits seeking sun and tranquillity, were echoed with the uproar from thousands of demonstrators this Sunday as they sought to pressure authorities into action.
Holidaymakers were left gobsmacked, witnessing local inhabitants voicing their grievances over the inundation of cruise ships, private planes, and holiday let landlords, blamed for escalating living costs and tarnishing the charm of their idyllic Balearic islands.
At one point during the protest, which organisers said had drawn 30,000 people to Palma’s streets, police stepped in at a central bar to shield patrons from protesters’ heckles and drumbeats.
One local told the Mail, “I’m protesting because I don’t want 80 per cent of my money to go on rent. I don’t want to be forced to speak only English or German in my apartment block.
“I don’t want my friends to have to go to the mainland when they have children just to be able to afford a dignified life, a lot of us are fed up.”