A FIFTH firefighter has lost his life as a result of the inferno that broke out in the Horta de Sant Joan area of Tarragona on Tuesday.

Four firemen died when they became surrounded by a wall of flames, and two were admitted to the burns unit of Barcelona’s Vall d’Hebrón hospital.

But one of these two men, Pau Costa, 31, died last night.

He had suffered second- and third-degree burns to 50 per cent of his body.

The blaze continues to burn, four days after it broke out, although forestry brigade workers and firefighters managed to bring the flames under control at around 11.00hrs yesterday morning.

Around 1,500 hectares of countryside have been wiped out, more than a third of which forms part of the Els Ports nature reserve in Beseit.

The forest fire was caused by a lightning strike during an electric storm.

It is one of numerous fires that continue to burn across the country today, including five in the Comunidad Valenciana, one near Mojácar and four in Aragón.