An estimated two hundred and fifty people, many who were foreign residents, were evacuated from one hundred and ten homes over a period of two days in the Mijas and Benalmadena area on the Costa del Sol.

Thursday morning of last week saw smoke caused by the massive wildfire, engulf the hillside situated between the popular ‘Holiday World’, located on the coast road joining Fuengirola to Benalmadena, and the Buddhist Stupa in the Benalmadena hills.

Sources say that it is believed that the fire was caused due to a spark from a power line, which caused the fire to spread reportedly after 10am on a steep hillside area filled with scrubland accommodating several villas and other residential areas, in the Cerro del Piojo zone.

A local newspaper reported, “Graham and Angela Salt, who live in the zone, told Costa del Sol News that while they were not officially evacuated, at one point were so concerned they started pulling belongings out of their house and putting them in the car. They also called a friend of theirs in England who has a home close to where the fire was raging, to advise him of the situation. "I rang him up shortly before noon and by 3pm he was on a flight," said Mr Salt. In the end the fire stopped just short of the friend''s house.”

Over 100 fire-fighters end emergency responders from Benalmadena and its surrounding towns had the daunting task of gaining control over the fire despite the high winds and difficult terrains, which they succeeded with after several hours, allowing the local residents to return to their own homes.