Marbella is a popular tourist destination in southern Spain

Thousands of people in the popular Spanish holiday resort of Marbella have been evacuated as forest fires continue to threaten the region.

A seven-mile wide section of forest surrounding the Mediterranean resort is presently ablaze, with hundreds of firefighters on the scene.

Nine planes and as many helicopters are being used to tackle the blaze.

“We can say there are thousands of people evacuated, mostly as a precautionary measure,” the Malaga provincial government chief Elias Bendodo told the Associated Press.

The flames broke out in the Sierra Negra Mountains Thursday afternoon.

“A relative lack of humidity, strong winds and high temperatures in the afternoon helped the fire to grow quickly,” said a statement by the regional government of southern Andalusia.