Wildfire Tears Down Mountain Near Palermo as Scirocco Howls

A wall of flames snaked across a mountainside above Altavilla Milicia, east of Palermo, as hot scirocco winds fanned a night of wildfires across western Sicily.

X user Joseph Frascati filmed the blaze in the early hours of October 21. One clip shows a long, curving line of fire racing across the slope behind electricity pylons under a smoke-filled orange sky. Another, filmed from a street in the town, shows the glowing ridge above rows of parked cars as an emergency vehicle with flashing blue lights drives past.

Several firefighting teams battled the flames in the Granatelli area, and some families had to leave their homes, according to TRS Notizie and TGR Sicilia. Firefighters and the forestry corps worked through the night.

Fires also broke out around Montelepre and spread toward the border with Trapani province, hitting Scopello and Castellammare del Golfo, where flames threatened Mediterranean scrub and tourist accommodation. Local media reported that many of the fires were believed to have been started deliberately.