Forest fire in Benahavis: Planes and helicopter are roped in to tackle inferno as smoke is seen from Marbella

A FOREST fire in the hills of Benahavis is said to have been stabilised.

Firefighters were in a race against time to extinguish the flames on Saturday night as strong winds threatened to extend it further.

The regional forest fire service INFOCA said two planes and a helicopter had been roped in to drop water on the inferno from above.

In an update at around 8.30pm it said the fire had been ‘stablised’.

Images from earlier in the afternoon showed trails of fire searing through green hills just a few kilometres away from Marbella.

Residents in nearby San Pedro de Alcantara reported seeing smoke in the air.

It comes as the so-called Gota Fria is brought strong winds across the country.

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