Almeria deadly fire evacuees describe nightmare night

Almeria fire

Residents of the municipality of Los Gallardos were surprised by the speed at which the flames spread, leaving them barely any time to collect their essential belongings

Sandra Martínez

The evacuees from the Almeria towns of Los Gallardos and Bédar share with SUR their stories as they wait in the shelter the authorities have prepared for them following the devastating fire that has already claimed eleven lives.

Andrés wipes the tears from his face. His gaze falls to the ground, exhausted and shaken by what happened. He was evacuated from Bédar when the fire in Los Gallardos ravaged everything in its path, but he feels fortunate. He was able to escape.

"The flames surrounded us in a second. I drove my car blindly through the smoke and fire. Then everything closed in on it and the flames grew all around," he says.

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• • • Andrés lends his phone to Marina, who still hasn't been able to let her family know she's safe. The signal was lost and her phone is now unusable.

      When she saw the smoke in the distance, Marina closed all the windows of her house, seeking shelter. "A neighbour came to tell me we had to leave. If she hadn't told me, I don't even know what would have happened this morning," she says.

      Ramón and Juani, a retired couple who were enjoying a few days of rest at the campsite in the Almeria town, are also among the 100 evacuees who have had to seek shelter in the municipal sports centre set up by the emergency services.

      The night has been especially long and difficult for the couple, who have also had to deal with health complications due to the accumulated stress and the high temperatures Ramón required continuous medical attention throughout the morning after suffering a severe drop in blood pressure.

      The couple said that the campsite evacuation order was carried out with extreme speed, leaving them only a few minutes to react. Amid the confusion and widespread panic, the couple's absolute priority was to get their dog, Negri, to safety, leaving the campsite against the clock and with barely enough time to gather their personal belongings or documents.

      Despite the tremendous scare and the understandable uncertainty, Ramón and Juani are grateful for the impeccable care and constant support they are receiving from the emergency services and the numerous local volunteers who have been at the centre since the moment of their arrival.

      At this time, the couple's biggest concern is knowing when the security forces will authorise controlled access to the campsite so they can retrieve their car and the rest of their belongings. Nevertheless, they say they feel relieved and at ease, despite the seriousness of the disaster, knowing that their immediate family have been informed of everything that happened and that both they and their pet are safe and sound.

      Macarena was spending a few days relaxing with her daughters at a campsite in Almeria province when a fire surrounded them. What began as a distant worry quickly turned into a desperate escape for her life in a matter of minutes.

      "At first we saw a cloud of smoke in the distance and didn't think it could affect us," Macarena says, recalling the initial moments of confusion. However, the apparent calm was abruptly shattered when a campsite worker raced through the pitches, warning campers that they had to evacuate the premises immediately due to the approaching flames.

      The order triggered a frantic exodus with barely any time to react. Amid the panic, Macarena knew exactly what she couldn't leave behind: because she is diabetic, she prioritised collecting her insulin and the rest of her medication, leaving most of her belongings behind.

      The scene at the campsite reflected the anguish and panic of dozens of families who abandoned everything with only the clothes on their backs. Macarena vividly recalls the helplessness of other campers, such as a neighbouring couple who had to flee in their pajamas and barely had time to grab a bag with their essential medications before the smoke engulfed the area.

      After managing to leave the area, Macarena and her daughters went to the Los Gallardos community centre. Macarena expresses her gratitude for the rapid response of the emergency services and the tremendous support provided to the evacuees at the shelter, where they received immediate medical attention, water and food. Priority was given to the elderly and those with chronic illnesses who required urgent medication.

      Despite the trauma she has experienced in the last few hours, Macarena says that her initial intention was to extend her vacation in the province of Almeria until 1 August. Hoping that her holiday won't end so abruptly, she is waiting for the fire department to tell her when she can return to the campsite, once the authorities confirm that conditions on the ground are completely safe and that air quality allows for a return to normalcy.

      At the age of 88, Renata has never seen anything like this fire in the more than four decades she has lived in Bédar. She celebrates being alive on the day her grandson Manuel turns 16. "He told me on a video call that his best gift was that I survived," she says.

      She left her house with the help of the Bédar Local Police, although she waited until the last minute because she has difficulty walking. María, her caregiver, accompanied her the whole time. "I couldn't go to my farmhouse or get my animals. I know my house burned down," she says.

      Inside the facility, they breathe through masks to protect themselves from the smoke. The smell of burning seeps into the room where they spent the night, but it's nothing like what they witnessed last night. "Everything was black, a nightmare we just wanted to escape."

      Special telephone number opened for families affected by the Almeria fire