Alex Trelinski
FOUR members of a family died in a house fire in Sevilla province on Sunday.
The blaze- reported at around 8am- happened in Guillena, a town 24 kms north of Sevilla.
It was the second most-deadly fire in Spain this year, following February’s apartment block disaster in Valencia where 10 people died.
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The deceased in Guillena were named as Jose Antonio Rendon, 47, his wife, Antonia Hidalgo, 52, and their sons Jose Antonio, 20, and Adrian, 16.
Emergency services were alerted that several people were trapped inside a semi-detached house on Calle Fernando Martin.
Three fire crews arrived from the neighbouring towns of Ronquillo and Santiponce
However, the speed with which the fire spread and the black smoke through the two-storey building, prevented the family from escaping alive.
The bodies were found together in the back of the house, as if they had tried to go out to a terrace to access the staircase which have led them to the roof.
Guillena mayor, Lorenzo Medina Moya, said: “There are no words… it is a sad day for the whole town, a tragedy.”
The property was completely burned with work being carried out to find out what caused the fatal fire.
The deceased family were well-known with the mother and father working in the fruit trade at Mercasevila, while their sons played for local sports teams.
Guillena City Council declared three days of official mourning.
“Any unexpected death is dramatic, but on this occasion to a much greater extent as they are young people and due to the circumstances of the event,” the mayor said in the decree.
