Alex Trelinski
AT LEAST 10 people died in a fire at a mental health care residential home in the Aragon region on Friday morning.
Several more were injured with two in a critical condition.
The blaze broke out at around 5am in Villafranca de Ebro, near Zaragoza resulting in the most fatalities at a residential home fire in Spain this century.
The building could house around 80 residents but authorities said there were 69 people inside.
No staff members were injured.
The facility, which opened 16 years ago as a retirement home, has since transitioned to specialise in care for residents with mental health conditions- catering for people of all ages.
The cause of the fire has not been confirmed officially, but speaking to Radio Nacional, Villafranca mayor, Volga Ramirez, suggested the blaze may have started ‘in a mattress’ in one of the rooms of the single-storey building.
She stressed that there ‘cannot be more bodies’ because ‘everyone’ was evacuated.
“Once all the smoke had cleared, we put people back inside because the firefighters told us it was safe,” she added.
Aragon president Jorge Azcón posted on his X account: “Shocked by the tragic fire at the nursing home in Villafranca de Ebro that claimed the lives of 10 people.”
“We are suspending all events as a sign of mourning and my deepest condolences to the families of the deceased,” he said.
Relatives of the care home residents have been asked to go to Villafranca Town Hall.
In 2015, another Zaragoza area residential home fire at Sante Fe resulted in the deaths of nine people.
It was caused by a mattress that was set on fire by one of the residents.
