Strong winds, high temperatures fuel wildfire near Spanish resort

Firefighting planes are seen flying from Parauta before making a water drop over a wildfire on Sierra Bermeja mountain, in Estepona, Spain, September 10, 2021. REUTERS/Jon Nazca

ESTEPONA, Spain (Reuters) - Unusually strong winds and high late-summer temperatures hindered efforts on Friday to tame a wildfire near a popular resort in southern Spain that has forced over 1,000 people out of their homes and killed an emergency worker.

Since erupting on Wednesday evening, the blaze has burned through around 3,600 hectares (8,896 acres) of forest in the mountainous Sierra Bermeja above Estepona, a Mediterranean resort favoured by British tourists and retirees.