British survivors of Almeria fire criticise claims that victims did not follow advice

Almeria fire

Bodies have to be identified with biological samples from family members, many of whom are travelling to Spain

Gerard Couzens

Furious Brits caught up in the Almeria wildfire tragedy have slammed politicians for claiming people ignored evacuation advice.

Regional government chiefs including Andalucía’s acting minister for health and emergencies Antonio Sanz have publicly linked some of the 12 confirmed deaths so far to victims’ failure to follow recommended evacuation exits.

Sanz said on Friday as the scale of the disaster in Bédar and the neighbouring municipality of Los Gallardos unfolded, referencing a group of seven people who died as they tried to escape the flames who are thought to have included Brits and Belgian nationals: “They were walking and had abandoned their cars and were probably looking for a way out.

“But they had taken a route which wasn’t the one indicated by the emergency services and the consequences have been terrible.”

Bédar’s mayor Angel Francisco Collado Fernández added later on: “We insisted to the people who didn’t want to leave that they had to do so.

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  “Fortunately one of those who decided to stay is still alive, recommending that the other nine neighbours take refuge in his home.

  “They didn’t take his advice and seven died and the other two suffered serious burns and are on their way to the Virgen del Rocío Hospital in Seville.”

  "No time for warning"

  Survivor Bob Layton, originally from Birmingham, said overnight as he revealed he had come within “60 seconds” of becoming another statistic and lost friends in the tragedy: “I am sick to the back teeth of hearing that people didn’t follow the ‘designated escape route’.

  “I was there. We lost our home, all our possessions and nearly our lives.

  “If we’d left 60 seconds later than we did, we’d have joined those poor souls, our friends and our neighbours. There was no warning, full stop.

  “In fairness, this fire was travelling so fast there was no time for any real warning to be given.

  “Within five minutes of seeing flames appearing across from English Hill, probably two kilometres from our home, I was faced with a five metre high wall of flames at my perimeter fence.

  “By the time I had run to my car and reversed onto the road the flames had surrounded the house and had jumped the road onto the opposite hillside. It was terrifying.

  "We escaped and from what I understand our neighbours, a few minutes later did try to follow the same route we had taken, but by then it was too late.

  “It had become an inferno, so they tried the only possible way out and it failed.

  “It is despicable that anyone, never mind a government official, would basically try and deflect blame onto these poor souls.

  “Unless you had been there, as I was, you’ll never begin to understand the terrifying situation you are facing.”

  "Bravery"

  He added in his no-holds-barred outpouring of emotion: “My sincere condolences to the families of those lost.

  “Also the bravery of our firefighters, the Guardia Civil and Diego, our local policeman in Bédar for their efforts to get everyone out to a safe place as this hell on earth evolved. Thank you.”

  He was backed by other survivors, including Celeste Picken who said responding to his social media post: “It’s absolutely ridiculous. There were NO warnings. No routes, nothing. People were running for their lives.”

  Maggi Lake added: “Well said. No one could have put it better.

  “It is absolutely true. No warnings and no time.”

  Lois Benson said: “Despicable is the correct word.”

  Sally Chapman, referencing the nearby locality of Lubrín where some survivors were temporarily put up in a local council shelter, added: “Totally agree with you .

  “We live in the village and had our windows closed and shutters down because of the hot weather, blindly watching Wimbledon and didn't realise anything was even wrong until hearing the commotion outside, whereby our Spanish neighbours shouted ‘Go to Lubrín’.

  “No siren, no SMS alert by phone, nothing but again it was so rapid who even knows if something like that was even in place, whether it would have prevented loss of life on this occasion. Just tragic all round.”

  None of the 12 people confirmed as dead so far has been formally identified. Several Brits are feared to be among them including four people discovered inside a gutted right-wheel drive Honda Accord.

  Officials have so far declined to comment on media reports that those who lost their lives include three children.

  Identifying the dead

  In a statement on the latest situation regarding work to ID the dead, making it clear almost all the victims were foreigners, the High Court of Andalucia said late last night: “The biology department of the Guardia Civil's forensic science service has now obtained the genetic profiles of the twelve people who died in the Los Gallardos fire.

  “Despite this, the victims have not yet been identified, as the relatives whose biological samples can be used for comparison are still travelling to Spain.

  “Since the samples collected from the bodies at the Institute of Legal Medicine arrived at the forensic science service, staff have worked throughout the night and all day today to obtain the genetic profiles of all the victims.

  “The reason the bodies have not yet been identified is that collecting samples from family members has been complicated, as they are travelling from other countries. The identification process is expected to be completed within the next few hours.

  “Regarding missing persons reports, one additional report was filed on Saturday, bringing the total number of missing persons reports to eight.

  “We are still unable to specify either the identities or the nationalities of those who died.”