A major fire has devastated two residential buildings in the Spanish city of Valencia, with terrifying images showing desperate residents trying to escape the flames on their balconies as the building is engulfed.
At least 13 people have been injured and residents are feared to remain trapped inside as the fire rages.
Witnesses have said that firefighters managed to rescue several people from their balconies, including a father and his daughter, a teenager and a couple.
The fire is believed to have started in a 14-storey residential block at around 5.30pm and devastated the residential block, which is located in the Campanar area of the eastern port city.
It started on the fourth floor and spread quickly, emergency services and horrified witnesses said, with dramatic images showing flames and huge clouds of black smoke engulfing the building.
The 14-storey apartment has reportedly been “reduced to a skeleton”, while a nearby building has also been engulfed in flames.
The building in the Campanar area of the port city has been completely destroyed
The neighbors were trapped on their balconies – a few meters from the flames – while they waited for firefighters to rescue them from the inferno.
Emergency services work at the scene of a residential building fire in Valencia
Several fire engines are on scene fighting the fire, which reportedly spread from one residential building to another.
Devastated neighbors console themselves at the site of the large fire in the Campanar area
Residents were pictured watching in horror tonight as their homes were destroyed before their eyes.
The apartment block has been “reduced to a skeleton”, according to local media, while a nearby building has also been consumed by flames.
More than 20 fire crews have participated in extinguishing the fire, but their efforts have been hampered by the wind and high temperatures of the fire.
Local media report that a field hospital has been set up inside the perimeter in case potential victims need treatment.
Tonight, dozens of residents were photographed watching in horror as their homes were destroyed before their eyes.
A neighbor who lives on the second floor of the building told the television channel La Sexta that he did notThe fire spread within 10 minutes after it broke out.
He speculated that the building’s façade material may have allowed the flames to move through the building so quickly.
A cloud of black smoke completely covered the building Thursday night and sparked flames.
The fire is believed to have started around 5.30pm on one flat before quickly spreading to the rest of the block.
Dramatic footage shows two residents desperately trying to protect themselves from the fire. Firefighters rescued several people from their balconies.
Engineer Esther Puchades, who inspected that same building, stated that it was “coated with polyurethane, a very flammable material,” RTVE reports.
David Higuera, another engineer, told Spanish newspaper El País that the building’s cladding may have been the cause of the fire’s rapid spread.
The foam insulation covering the building is “very good at insulating against heat and cold, but very combustible,” he said.
Thirteen people have been confirmed injured so far, including a firefighter with a broken wrist and residents who suffered burns and smoke inhalation.
Spanish public television TVE said there were more than 130 apartments in the building.
Television images showed the entire façade of the building in flames as burning segments fell to the pavement and small explosions could be heard inside.
Building manager and resident Adriana fights back tears as she watches the block go up in flames.
Firefighters work to extinguish the flames as they continue to raze the residential block.
The cause of the fire is unknown and it is not known if there are any victims.
Images showed flames and huge clouds of black smoke engulfing the building.
Firefighters have been battling the fire ravaging the residential block in the eastern port city.
Local media reported that several residents called for help from the balconies of their apartments.
Ana Mari González, who works at a nearby clinic, told TVE that she could see firefighters working to rescue a teenager trapped on the first floor of the building.
“Please stay away from the fire area so that the emergency services can do their job,” the mayor of Valencia, María José Catalá, wrote in X.
Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said he was “shocked by the terrible fire” and was in contact with the mayor and the leader of the region “to offer them all the help they need” and to express his condolences to all those affected. for the fire.
The building is in a relatively new area of Campanar, located northwest of the city center.