More than 5,000 evacuated due to fire on Spanish island

People rest at San Sebastian de la Gomera port after being evacuated from Valle Gran Rey on the Spanish Canary Island of La Gomera August 13, 2012. [Photo/Agencies]

MADRID - More than 5,000 people on the island of La Gomera, or some one fourth of the island's total population, have been evacuated due to a wildfire that broke out earlier this month.

The fire, which started on August 4, have so far raged on more than 4,100 hectares of land, including 750 hectares of the National Park of Garajonay, destroying 25 percent of the area.

Last weekend's he heat wave, in combination with low humidity and changes in the direction of the wind, have made it more difficult for firefighters to control and extinguish the fire in La Gomera.

Spain often suffers from wildfires, especially in summers. In Alicante of Valencia, two people were killed while taking part in firefighting.