At the advanced command post in Turre, located just a few kilometers from the serious fire that has threatened the municipality of Los Gallardos and nearby towns since last Thursday, the atmosphere yesterday was somewhat different. This was confirmed around 11 a.m. when the president of the Junta de Andalucía, Juanma Moreno Bonilla, announced that the fire had finally been stabilized, so it was downgraded to “operational situation 1” and the gradual return of the thousand people who had been evacuated was authorized. The negative note of the day came at night, when the death of a 93-year-old British woman who was hospitalized at the Torrecárdenas Hospital was confirmed, bringing the death toll to 13. In addition, seven other people remain hospitalized.
The number of missing persons has also risen to ten after two new reports were filed on Sunday night. More reports are expected shortly, although the identity and nationality of the deceased cannot yet be specified, according to a statement from the Research and Development Center (C.I.D). The collaboration of the consular authorities of Belgium, the United Kingdom, and France is allowing the obtaining of genetic profiles, the only primary identification method that can be used to identify the victims.
The Andalusian president also emphasized that “this is the beginning of the end of this terrifying fire.” He also recalled that “there is an ongoing judicial investigation” to clarify the causes of the fire and that “humidity levels of 90%” helped to contain the fire. “The work now focuses first on controlling and then extinguishing the fire,” he summarized.
Juanma Moreno and Margarita Robles highlight “coordination and cooperation”
Minutes after delivering the awaited news of the fire’s stabilization, the Andalusian president appeared again alongside the Minister of Defense, Margarita Robles, and both leaders praised “the coordination between administrations.” Moreno Bonilla himself acknowledged that “without that cooperation, there would surely have been more victims.”
For her part, the Defense Minister, who traveled to Turre yesterday as the Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez will do today, highlighted that “we have exceptional professionals who give their all.” “I feel very proud of all the collaboration and I also want to especially thank the mayors who have helped save lives,” Robles concluded.
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Despite the improvement of the situation in Los Gallardos, work and activity did not cease in the areas most threatened by the fire. In Mojácar, where about a hundred evacuees were relocated to their hotels, several buses left along with members of the Red Cross to transport groups of evacuees to their homes.
Many of these people were residents of Bédar, one of the towns most affected by the flames, and its mayor, Ángel Collado, known in recent days for warning his neighbors door to door when the fire broke out, told La Vanguardia that “now we focus on reconstruction.” “It seems the end is closer, we want our neighbors to return to their homes and see that most are intact,” he assured.
Meanwhile, an important search device made up of about a hundred personnel continued for much of the day with sweeps in the affected areas, which were suspended in the mid-afternoon after no new mortal victims were found, while some animals that had to be abandoned by their owners were recovered. Meanwhile, the 12 deceased trapped by the fire have not yet been identified, although their DNA samples are already in Madrid and the Forensic Biology department is analyzing them. Relatives of the possible victims, apparently British, French, and Belgian, also arrived in Spain yesterday to undergo DNA testing. Civil Guard sources insist that some of the missing persons may be among the deceased.
One of the major concerns of those affected is how the damage assessment will be carried out. Thus, the municipalities of Los Gallardos, Bédar, Antas, and Lubrín, the most affected, will set up an office starting today to centralize management and coordinate the aid announced by the central government, Junta de Andalucía, and the Provincial Council. In a meeting held yesterday between the Secretary General of Civil Protection and Emergencies, Virginia Barcones, the Junta delegate in Almería, Aránzazu Martín, the president of the Almería Provincial Council, José Antonio García Alcaina, the government subdelegate, José María Martín, and the mayors, the plan was outlined that will include financing and restoring basic public services that have been damaged, such as water supply, energy, and communications. For this, fieldwork will be carried out to note all deficiencies in these areas.
On the other hand, the plan also includes financial resources for residents whose homes have been damaged. In this case, the intention is to expedite aid lines to access the financing mechanisms of Civil Protection. Meanwhile, the Junta de Andalucía and the Provincial Council have already expressed their intention to provide aid. “You are not alone,” Virginia Barcones concluded.
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