The Collserola fire is stabilized after burning 10 hectares and the Urban Guard arrests a suspect

The forest fire declared this Friday afternoon in the mountain of Sant Pere Màrtir, within the Collserola natural park, has been stabilized after burning about ten hectares of scrubland and trees. The balance provided by the Agents Rurals remains provisional and so far no injuries have been reported.

The Guardia Urbana of Barcelona has arrested a person in the vicinity of where the flames started for their possible connection to the fire. Agents located the suspect after observing strange behavior and gathering testimony from several neighbors. The Mossos d'Esquadra will take charge of the criminal investigation, while the Agents Rurals work to determine the origin of the fire.

The alert was received at 3:35 PM and the starting point has been located near number 92 of Pearson Avenue, in the Barcelona neighborhood of Pedralbes and close to the Carretera de les Aigües. From there, the flames advanced rapidly towards the upper part of Sant Pere Màrtir and also reached the municipality of Esplugues de Llobregat.

Images disseminated from Barcelona showed a dense column of smoke rising over Collserola for several hours while aerial means carried out discharges. The 112 received more than a thousand calls related to the fire, favored by the enormous visibility of the smoke from different neighborhoods and municipalities in the metropolitan area.

The operation gathered about thirty units from the Barcelona Fire Department and the Generalitat, four of them aerial. After the fire was stabilized, aerial means withdrew at dusk and ten fire engine vehicles remain working on the ground. During the night, a drone will be incorporated to detect hot spots and possible secondary outbreaks.

The head of coordination of the Bombers de la Generalitat, Joaquim Boigues, explained that the fire spread "very quickly". The sea breeze pushed the right flank towards the upper part of the mountain, while the proximity of an antenna and several power lines hindered the work of aerial means. The paths that cross the area ended up acting as firebreaks and helped to stop the advance.

One arrested and Can Caralleu deconfinated

The favorable evolution has allowed to lift the preventive confinement of the residents of Can Caralleu, decreed during the first hours of the fire. Residents of the Carretera de les Aigües, Avenida Pearson and some areas of Sant Just Desvern were also asked to stay at home.

The Espai Mireia restaurant, located in Esplugues, was preventively evacuated and the Guardia Urbana closed access to the area to facilitate the passage of emergency vehicles. Traffic has been recovering after the stabilization of the fire, although there are still affectations on the BV-1468 between Molins de Rei and Sarrià. Forest tracks and paths must remain clear for extinction teams.

The third deputy mayor of Barcelona, Albert Batlle, has assured that the fire is "absolutely stabilized" and has highlighted that "the good news is that the forest affectation has been minimal". The municipal official confirmed that the starting point is in the vicinity of Avenida Pearson and asked to wait for the results of the investigations before determining responsibilities.

The head of the Barcelona Fire Department, Sebastià Massagué, explained that the perimeter is stopped and stabilized, although there are still several hours of work left. The teams will continue to soak the affected surface and review the areas with higher temperatures to prevent reproductions favored by the wind.

The Barcelona City Council had activated the Municipal Action Plan for forest fire risk in the alert phase during the morning. The declaration of the fire forced it to be subsequently raised to the emergency phase and to issue a preventive warning to the municipalities bordering the natural park.

The mayor of Esplugues de Llobregat, Eduard Sanz, has indicated that municipal services were activated from the first hours and remained coordinated with emergency teams. The Natural Park Consortium also monitored the fire from its prevention center and evacuated the watchman from the Sant Pere Màrtir tower when the flames were detected.

The fire occurred on a day of particularly high risk. The Generalitat maintains Barcelonès at level 3 of the Alfa Plan, corresponding to a very high risk of forest fire. Barcelona had previously reinforced surveillance over Collserola and kept the city's seven fire stations prepared.

The possible relationship of the detainee with the fire will have to be clarified by the Mossos d'Esquadra. The Agents Rurals will continue analyzing the terrain and the starting point while the ten fire engines and the night device complete the cooling tasks.