Columns of smoke, pictured from the village of Guimar, on Aug 17, 2023, billow from a huge wildfire which broke out almost two days ago and is raging in the northeastern part of the Canary island of Tenerife. (PHOTO / AFP)

MADRID - Authorities on the Spanish island of Tenerife evacuated some 3,000 people from their homes overnight as a wildfire sparked by high temperatures and strong winds raged in a forested area already ravaged by fire in August.

Emergency services said on Thursday on messaging platform X, formerly known as Twitter, they had requested assistance from the army's Military Emergency Unit, citing the blaze, which ignited on Wednesday, as a high level emergency.

The Canary Islands regional leader Fernando Clavijo told a business event in Madrid on Thursday the August fire had been brought under control but never completely extinguished, with embers still burning in the forest

August's wildfire burned for days, destroying some 15,000 hectares of woodland within the national park surrounding the Mount Teide volcano, Spain's highest peak. Thousands were also evacuated then, with most returning to their homes.

ALSO READ: Tens of thousands evacuated as wildfire rages in Spain's Tenerife

The Canary Islands regional leader, Fernando Clavijo, told a business event in Madrid on Thursday the August fire had been brought under control but never completely extinguished, with embers still burning in the forest.

He said firefighting efforts overnight had "gone well".

"There is less fuel (for the fire), so it shouldn't get out of hand," Clavijo said, referring to the already scorched terrain.

READ MORE: Nightclub fire kills at least 13 in Murcia in Spain

The island, in the Atlantic off Africa's northwestern coast, is on alert for high temperatures that are expected to reach 39 C throughout Thursday.