In late September last year, the fire in Albufera affected 480 hectares. Despite the efforts of firefighters, including planes that were operating non-stop during daylight, it ultimately required nature to intervene in order to put the fire out completely.
The blaze had started on the Friday evening. Rain came overnight on Saturday and into Sunday morning. The regional environment minister, Miquel Mir, has visited Albufera. He says that there is a “good degree of recovery”. But he adds - and this was a point made immediately after the fire - that it will take a couple of years to truly assess the recovery.
The biodiversity of Albufera was severely affected, but images of the recovery have been appearing regularly, showing regrowth and the presence of migrating birds.