A mysterious fire was recorded via a camera in a public park in Spain. As seen in the video, fire lines were seen burning the ground of the park at a quick pace. What's interesting in the video is that no trees or grass were touched by the heat coming from the fire. How could this happen?
Viral video: Fire that mysteriously sweeps park left trees and grass untouched
On May 6, a video of a park burning emerged online. The viral video shows a thin line of fire burning the entire ground of a park called Parque del Cidacos in Calahorra, a municipality in the La Rioja region of Spain.
In the video, it seemed like the park was being destroyed by a small wildfire. However, mysteriously, the fire did not catch up on the trees and grasses that it touched.
The man that posted the video and shared it online said that it was his first time seeing this kind of bizarre fire in the said park. He thought that the white material on the surface of the ground was only dust until the fire caught its small area and rapidly started a thin line of fire.
"I live by the park and went out with my eight-year-old daughter Cayetana for a walk, as is allowed, and we saw as if there was dust in the park. When we approached, we then saw a small fire," said Juan Carlos Gil Lopez.
After seeing the fire, Lopez immediately called the fire department. And this is where he found that the fire is mysteriously not damaging flammable particles from trees and even grass.
"The grass did not get burnt, it was amazing seeing it green again," he added.
Explanation behind the mysterious fire caught on cam
As said on the local news outlet of La Rioja, there is nothing mysterious in the video. The white substance that was found on covering the park is the seeds produced by poplar trees.
These particles are highly-flammable, according to the report.
"The downy fluff comprises tiny fibers that surround seeds inside the catkins of poplars and willows," Dr. Matthew Brookhouse, a tree expert at Australian National University, explained on the university's website. "The fibers that comprise the fluff helps seed dispersal. By catching even light breezes and adding to the seed's buoyancy, fluff allows seeds to be carried far from the mother parent."
It was suggested by the report that the seeds were deliberately burned to remove the fluff. However, Mayor of Calahorra Elisa Garrido has explained that there was no 'control burning' of the poplar tree seeds.
"In the Cidacos de Calahorra park, there is no 'controlled burning' of poplar fluff. Every spring, it is common for people with little heads (carelessly or intentionally) to cause these fires. They are very dangerous and spread quickly," Garrido tweeted.
