Forest Fires, Vulnerability, and Exposure: The Evaluation of What Was Salvaged in the 2023 Fire in Tenerife (Spain)

Forest fires are one of the risks with the greatest socio-territorial impact in island areas with Mediterranean precipitation characteristics. Regions such as the Canary Islands, densely populated and where there is no clear differentiation between land uses, regularly suffer major forest fires that devastate a large part of their forest mass and endanger the lives and property of thousands of people. This paper characterizes the forest fire that occurred on the island of Tenerife during the month of August 2023—defined as the most severe in Spain during that year—from a double perspective: on the one hand, analysis of the exposure and vulnerability of the buildings located in the surroundings of the fire and, on the other hand, economic quantification of the assets salvaged thanks to the intervention of the means and resources deployed by the authorities. The conclusion is that the analyzed buildings exhibit moderate vulnerability and exposure, being high in aspects such as their poor accessibility, their proximity to forest areas and, specifically, to dangerous fuel models, as well as the slope of their surroundings and their proximity to ravines. In terms of the evaluation of what was salvaged, the losses avoided are estimated at EUR 187 million, which would have been added to the actual losses—EUR 164 million—especially thanks to the interventions carried out around the nearby buildings and agricultural areas.