Amidst high winds... forest fire fighting continues in Morocco.

Arabian Sea Newspaper - Special

Arabian Gulf - Agencies: Firefighters continued working on Thursday to contain a large fire that broke out on Tuesday in the forests of the tourist area of Chefchaouen in northern Morocco, according to Agence France-Presse correspondents. "Canadair" aircraft flew over the rugged area in the morning amid strong winds, and intervention teams remained on alert near Derdara, one of the first affected villages. "The fire has consumed everything," said Mohamed Daraz, a farmer specializing in olive cultivation. Abdelrahim Houmy, Director General of the National Agency for Water and Forests, explained that this fire is the "largest" this year in Morocco, with an "exceptional" spread of fire due to the nature of the land and the intensity of the winds. As of Wednesday evening, the area of forests and crops destroyed was 500 hectares, according to official sources. Morocco is experiencing a severe heat wave accompanied by hot, dry easterly winds blowing from the Sahara. In southern Europe, Portugal, Greece, Italy and Spain continued firefighting operations on Thursday as the heat wave persisted.