A fire that broke out yesterday morning (Friday) near Costa Brava in northeastern Spain has consumed 2,200 hectares (22 million square meters) of forest and agricultural land in this tourist area of the Catalan coast, but caused no injuries, according to the fire service.

In a statement this morning (Saturday), the service said that "firefighters managed overnight to contain about 70 percent of the right flank of the fire and stabilize it, and they continue working to secure it before the expected change in wind direction around midday."

A firefighting plane drops water on a forest fire spreading to a residential area in Calonge, Catalonia (EPA).

They explained that "the fire, which is believed to be caused by negligence, has affected about 2,200 hectares of vegetation, mostly forest," adding that "closure and curfew measures (remain) in place in the (seven affected) towns," according to AFP.

Police officers and firefighters arrive at the site of the burning fire near La Bisbal d'Empordà (AFP).

The fire broke out yesterday (Friday) near the town of La Bisbal d'Empordà, close to Girona, about twenty kilometers from the Mediterranean coast. About 400 firefighters, including ten air units, are participating in ongoing operations to control the fire.

Catalan fire brigade commander David Borrell stressed that "the priority is to protect the population." He added: "When citizens stay at home, they are safer... Anyone outside is exposing themselves to unnecessary risk."

The fire broke out Friday near the town of La Bisbal d'Empordà, close to Girona (EPA).

Spain is among the European countries most vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, and last summer it experienced "the worst fires in its modern history," as Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez recalled in May; flames consumed 393,000 hectares, according to the European Forest Fire Information System (EFFIS).

Eight people died in these fires, which numbered more than 8,000, while 86 others were injured and more than 42,000 were evacuated, according to the Interior Ministry.

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