People evacuated from a Swiss region hit by a forest fire were allowed to return to their homes despite flames returning to a spot that had previously been extinguished.
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Los evacuados regresan a sus hogares en la zona de los incendios forestales de Suiza
Firefighters declared the village of Oberried, in the southwest canton of Valais, safe on Saturday evening after the blaze was doused near to an access road.
The authorities hinted that people with holiday homes in the area might be free to use their properties on Sunday with the situation deemed stable but not yet fully under control.
This was made evident by the return of flames to a football pitch sized zone near to the town of Bitsch on Sunday morning. The renewed fire was later brought under control with the help of helicopters.
“The current situation is stable, but very dangerous,” a spokesperson for the fire management team told the Keystone-SDA news agency.
The Swiss army has been called in to assist the firefighting effort with two Super Puma helicopters and ground-based specialists.
Up to 50,000 trees have already been consumed by flames, according to the SonntagsZeitung newspaper, which reports first-hand testimony from firefighters working in temperatures of around 300 degrees Celcius.
“The entire flank below the Riederhorn [mountain] was bathed in orange light by flames and embers – it looked terrifying,” said one.
“The fire continues to smolder underground. A tree that seems unharmed suddenly bursts into flames. The ash is up to 20 centimetres high and you can’t see if there are embers underneath.”
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