In Spain, the city of Valencia is still in shock after the impressive fire which ravaged a residential building on the evening of Thursday February 22. At least four people died in the flames and fifteen others are still missing, including a two-year-old child and a two-week-old baby.
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With our correspondent in Madrid, Diane Cambon
In one hour, the fourteen-story building located in the very center of Valencia, in Spain, was ravaged by flames. These have spread all along the facade both horizontally and vertically. This morning, all that remains is a shell of the building that is still incandescent, which complicates access to its interior.
Firefighters, six of whom were injured last night, are still searching for residents stuck in this building of 138 apartments. They use drones to enter completely destroyed homes. In total, 22 firefighting teams were deployed to the building to try to put out the flames, rescuers said on X. Eight medical units were also sent to the scene of the disaster, where a field hospital was installed. In the evening, firefighters notably saved a father and his daughter, trapped on their balcony, according to a video posted on social networks.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez will visit the site at midday on Friday, his services announced. The prefect of the Valencia region, Pilar Bernabé, indicated for her part on Friday morning that “ 14 people ” had “ not been located » among the residents of the building. “ This figure may vary “, she nevertheless warned. The mayor of Valencia, María José Catalá, mentioned the figure of “ 9 to 15 » disappeared.
The manufacturer accused
In the aftermath of the tragedy, questions about the materials used to insulate the facade multiplied and implicated the builder, whose company went bankrupt in 2010. This builder, who built another equally high-end building in the city of Valencia, would have used a polyurethane facade covering. This material is a petroleum derivative which amounts to “ solidified gasoline ”, according to the engineers. This insulation is known to be easily flammable, but its use is legal. This is the same material that was used in Grenfell Tower in London, where a fire killed 72 people in June 2017.
Spain was already recently marked by a dramatic fire which left 13 dead in early October. in a nightclub in Murcia (South East). Six people were charged in December for “ manslaughter » after this tragedy.
(And with AFP)