A British man died in the Spanish wildfires while attempting to rescue cats and speaking on the phone to his wife, as authorities confirmed at least 12 fatalities from the blaze.
Penelope Howe, an expatriate living near Bedar, told The Times that the man's wife was on the phone with him when he became trapped in his car surrounded by flames. "He had got the cats and was trapped in the car. They were speaking together for the last few minutes. That was how it ended," Howe recounted.
Officials believe many of the victims were foreign nationals, with British and Belgian citizens among those confirmed dead. At least 23 people remain missing, raising concerns that the death toll could increase.
The fires, which swept through southern Spain, forced hundreds of people to evacuate their homes. Authorities are working to identify the victims using genetic material provided by relatives, a process that has been complicated by families traveling from other countries to provide comparison samples.
Spanish authorities stated that the deaths occurred because individuals ignored official advice to shelter in place. However, the son of one of the Belgian victims disputes this account. Thomas-Wolf Verdonckt told Reuters that his father, 63-year-old businessman Stanislas Verdonckt, received no guidance from emergency services as the fire advanced on their mountain village.
"The people who died did not fail to follow any orders because no orders were given. No information was provided," Verdonckt said, adding that his father and neighbors only attempted to flee when the flames were imminent.
Local officials maintain that door-to-door checks and phone calls were made to inform residents about evacuation routes or sheltering instructions, depending on the fire's progression in their specific area. Bedar mayor Angel Collado stated he had urged Stanislas Verdonckt's group to shelter in place.
The regional government of Andalusia announced that the wildfire has been stabilized, with approximately 1,000 remaining evacuees permitted to return home. The burned area remains at around 6,600 hectares (16,300 acres).
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez is scheduled to visit the affected area. Burned-out vehicles remain visible along roads where people were caught by the rapidly spreading fire, which moved at speeds up to 100 meters per minute. The Civil Guard conducted a final sweep of the area on Sunday to ensure no victims were left unaccounted for, having already checked over 250 homes.
