Valencia fire: At least four killed as blaze engulfs apartment blocks in Spain
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Rewritten: Written by Sean Seddon and Ido Vock, this blog section explores a different approach to expressing the same ideas using alternative vocabulary.
According to emergency services, two interconnected apartment buildings in Valencia, Spain, were engulfed in flames, resulting in the death of four individuals and up to 15 persons are currently unaccounted for.
The fire consumed a 14-level building located in Campanar district and eventually spread to a connected structure.
Firefighters were observed saving individuals from verandas.
Specialists suggest that inflammable panels on the construction of the edifice allowed the flames to propagate swiftly.
According to the manager of the building quoted by El Pais, there were a total of 138 apartments within the premises, which used to house around 450 people.
A total of 15 individuals, consisting of 6 firefighters and one small child, sustained injuries that are not fatal.
María José Catalá, the Mayor of Valencia, has announced that officials are continuing their search for around nine to fifteen individuals. The regional government's representative also confirmed that there are currently 14 people who cannot be found.
Over 20 fire teams worked together to put out the fire, which was worsened by strong gusts of wind. As of Friday morning, the building was left as a greatly damaged and charred structure. Authorities advised the public to refrain from approaching the location.
According to sources in the area, firefighters utilized cranes to save numerous individuals, among them a pair who lived on the seventh story.
A female individual disclosed to the Spanish television broadcaster TVE that she had witnessed firefighters endeavoring to save a young male stuck on the initial level of the edifice.
Luis Ibanez, a resident in the vicinity, reported to TVE that he observed the block being consumed by the inferno in a matter of minutes. He compared the speed of the fire to that of cork burning.
I couldn't trust what I was witnessing. The entire part of the construction just in front of me was engulfed in flames.
A male individual residing on the second story of the edifice informed the television news network La Sexta that the inferno swiftly expanded once it ignited, purportedly commencing on the fourth story.
He mentioned that the fire expanded within a span of 10 minutes. Additionally, he suggested that the substances on the outer surface of the structure might have contributed to the fire's rapid spread.
Check out: The moment when two individuals were saved from a blazing tower block in Spain.
Spain is currently facing inquiries regarding the construction elements implemented in a building erected between 2008 and 2009.
According to the Spanish news agency Efe, Esther Puchades, who serves as the vice president of the College of Industrial Technical Engineers of Valencia, stated that she had previously carried out an inspection of the edifice.
According to her, the outside of it is made of polyurethane, a material that is not commonly used anymore due to concerns about it catching fire easily. In addition, there is a layer of aluminum on top.
She informed the Spanish media that the rapid burning of the [building] was primarily due to the specific type of covering used.
According to professionals, the cladding is efficient in keeping the heat inside but the gap that separates it from the main surface can easily ignite.
According to Luis Sendra, a member of the group of architects in Valencia, such a circumstance could potentially create a "chimney effect" that would result in a faster spread of fires.
The matter of cladding brings up memories of the dreadful incident that transpired in 2017 at the Grenfell Tower in London. The cladding was held responsible for causing the fire to spread rapidly, which led to the untimely death of 72 people.
Source of the picture: Getty Images
At approximately 5:30 pm in the local timezone (4:30 pm Coordinated Universal Time), firefighters were requested. RTVE has stated that a mobile hospital has been arranged in that location. The authorities have said that individuals who have been forced to flee their homes will be accommodated in hotels.
In his X post (previously called Twitter), Spain's leader Pedro Sanchez expressed his sadness regarding the horrific building fire that broke out in Valencia. He conveyed heartfelt sympathy to all those affected, and expressed gratitude for the efforts of emergency responders currently on site.
The government officials of Valencia have declared a particular day of grief to honor those who lost their lives in the fire.
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