Cabildo, Canary Islands government and Buenavista council set up special commission to oversee the operation

Masca Hamlet is to be fully restored in the wake of the forest fires which swept across the Buenavista and Santiago del Teide region last week. The operation will be carried out in a coordinated way taking into account factors such as the local environment and the historical heritage as well as the impact from a cultural and tourism standpoint.

These are some of the findings which came to light at a meeting held yesterday morning [8 August] between the Cabildo’s general coordinator for Cultural Affairs, Historic Patrimony & Museums, Cristobal de la Rosa, and the junior minister for Culture at the Canary Islands government, Alberto Delgado, the general director for Historic Patrimony, Aranzazu Gutiérrez, and the mayor of Buenavista, Aurelio Abreu.

During the meeting it was decided that a special commission will be set up to oversee the operation comprising representatives from the three public administrations. It will meet once a week from now on to check the progress of the restoration work to homes and Masca’s old quarter damaged by fire as well as the effects on the countryside in the vicinity. Once an initial estimate has been drawn up outlining the damage caused by the blaze, a detailed study will be commissioned to examine each individual case, which will also take into account any losses in cultural, tourism and commercial terms.

A special plan “Plan Director” will be set up to restore the entire hamlet to its former glory which will include town planning and landscape and pay special attention to the high historic and cultural value of a place which, over the years, has developed its own peculiar lifestyle which is unique on Tenerife.

The representatives of the different public administrations expressed their willingness to work together in a coordinated way to compensate for the losses caused by the fire to the local residents in this unique beauty spot.

Masca Hamlet is a National Cultural Site (B.I.C.). Classed as a Historic Set of Buildings, there are four main clusters of houses: Lomo de Masca, Lomo del Medio y La Piedra, El Turrón and La Bica accessed from the road which links Santiago del Teide with Buenavista del Norte. Consisting of just over fifty buildings, many of which were built in the rural architectural style commonly found in the Macizo de Teno mountain range, typical features include thick basalt stone walls with very few gaps and sloping tiled roofs. The buildings were designed to adapt to the terrain as much as possible and are one of the main attractions in Masca, which has become one of the major beauty spots for visitors to Tenerife.