A wildfire broke out in the afternoon of Thursday, April 24, in a densely forested area of Valtocado in the Sierra de Mijas. The blaze broke out at approximately 4pm approximately 500m uphill from the popular restaurant Venta Los Condes and is believed to have been accidentally ignited by a brush cutter during routine land-clearing work, according to local police at the scene. Local police were on the scene almost immediately, but firefighting teams from Mijas took longer. A Superpuma helicopter swept over the zone with a firefighting team aboard to inspect the blaze and then set down about 100 metres on a small plateau near the road to let the crew out. Meanwhile, another helicopter started lifting water from a lake in Alhaurín Golf to drop on the flames. Briefly, Guardia Civil blocked off the road to stop traffic passing through but later allowed the traffic to flow again. 19 firefighters were involved, 2 helicopter pilots, and 2,500 litres of water were dropped on the site. This has been the first alert of its kind of the year, highlighting the necessity to remain vigilant, as while the ground may still be damp after the excessive rains of recent weeks, the possibility of fire remains extremely high.