In the municipality of Villanueva de los Castillejos in the province of Huelva, a forest fire broke out at 13:50 on Wednesday, 16 September 2026, in Paraje El Alamillo . According to the Andalusian forest-fire prevention and response programme, Plan Infoca up to eleven aircraft are currently deployed, supported by ground crews. The emergency service Emergencias 112 Andalucía reported that the road A-495 is closed to traffic in both directions between kilometres 18 and 26.
Plan Infoca specified that, alongside the aircraft, four forest-firefighting groups and one Brica (Brigada de Refuerzo contra Incendios Forestales de Andalucía) are working at the scene. Also deployed are two operational technicians, an environmental officer and three water tenders (autobombas). A Unidad Móvil de Meteorología y Transmisiones and a Unidad Médica de Incendios Forestales are on hand to coordinate and support the operation. No information on the area affected or the cause was initially available.
The authorities asked road users to take a wide detour and follow the instructions of emergency crews. No injuries or evacuations had been reported by the afternoon. According to matching statements from Plan Infoca and Junta de Andalucía the incident command’s priority is containing the flames near the roads and protecting isolated farmsteads.
Late-summer warmth may hamper firefighting efforts; sudden changes in wind direction have repeatedly been identified as a risk in the Huelva area in the past. However, no specific readings considered decisive for today’s operation had initially been published. The scale of the resources deployed in the early stages suggests that the incident command is seeking to establish the perimeter through rapid coordination between ground and air units. The authorities had issued no forecasts on how the situation would develop by press time.
Wildfires in the Huelva region have repeatedly tied up significant resources this summer. However, the current operation is a separate incident and concerns only the affected area of El Alamillo near Villanueva de los Castillejos. Plan Infoca and Emergencias 112 Andalucía said they would provide further information during the afternoon; the A-495 remains closed until further notice.
Editor: Andreas M. Brucker (Article created with AI assistance).