Fire rages close residential property in Tala

A FIRE raged close to a luxury house in Paphos yesterday as five fire engines and dozens of villagers rushed to the scene to help extinguish the blaze.

According to a Paphos Fire Brigade spokesman the fire was reported at around 12.15pm by a concerned neighbour, who had spotted the blaze.

“The fire spread very quickly because of the strength of the wind, and destroyed plants and trees, but we were able to prevent it from reaching the house which is very close,” he said.

The incident occurred next to the main road on the borders of Emba and Tala villages, on a privately owned piece of land but luckily was stopped right next to the house.

The fire destroyed two hectares of scrubland and burnt an orchard of carob trees.

Locals, farmers and passersby scrambled to aid the firefighters, using their own water supplies, to ensure that the blaze did not engulf the house and spread further up the hillside, to other properties close by.

An hour later, according to the chief, the blaze had been brought under control, but thick plumes of choking black smoke were still clearly visible on the hillside for miles around.

The cause of the fire is under investigation, but the fire spokesman confirmed the fire it could have been started by a motorist carelessly throwing away a cigarette because it had started at the side of the road.

“There have been many fires in Tala this summer and most of them, we believe, were started under suspicious circumstances,” he added, referring to the four fires in the area last Thursday.

“We are investigating all of the fires along with the police, including this one,” the spokesman added.

He urged the public to take all the necessary precautions to ensure fires are not started.

“Do not light fires outdoors and do not throw cigarettes out of vehicle windows,” he said./

“These are the main causes of fires such as these during this period.”