A spectacular fire that has started in a fruit and vegetable warehouse in Mercamadrid has affected four premises of the well-known Madrid wholesale food market.
When 18 fire crews arrived, the fire was already well developed and spread to the adjacent ships and they are still working to control it and prevent its spread to more ships.
"(The fire) has broken through the deck and we are defending, we are trying to make it advance as slowly as possible," explained Fernando Munilla, firefighters watch supervisor.
“It spreads progressively to neighboring ships, there is an area of approximately 6,000 square meters and we are trying by all means to try to save as many ships as possible.”
A few minutes before 11:00 p.m. this Saturday, almost four hours after it started,
Firefighters have controlled and contained the fire.
A little earlier they had considered entering the interior, but they have ruled it out due to "danger of collapse".
It is not yet known how much surface has ended up affected by the flames, although a municipal police spokesman calculates "by eye" that "a third of the ship" has burned.
Outside the market there were several fire trucks with articulated arms since 7:00 p.m. that tried to first stop the fire through the roofs, that way they could also see the interior and observe which area it was advisable to put out the fire.
Several toilets from the Samur-Civil Protection who have come preventively were also at the gates of the market.
So far they have not had to attend to anyone.
A municipal police spokesman explained that, as there were no compartments inside the building, the flames spread more quickly.
Observing the work of the firefighters was the businessman Jesús Salas, 50 years old, 35 of them working there, where he has five positions.
He received the call at 7:15 p.m., when he was at home resting after working all night.
“We have lost everything, a life working and the fire ate it up.
My father is devastated.
Our colleagues have told us that they are going to leave us their jobs to continue working, but all the documents and computers are in the offices [where the fire started] and they are lost”, he said with his arms crossed over his chest and with his eyes full of tears.
Along with Salas, about ten people watched the work of the emergency services.
They are the other members of the family, also with fruit and vegetable stalls on ship A. They speak nervously on the phone, answering calls from people who ask them about the fire.
Meanwhile, they try to organize the work of the following days, hoping to recover the records they keep in the offices.
“Nothing, I'm leaving.
There is nothing else to do here,” said Salas after several hours there, disconsolate.
A spokesperson for Mercamadrid has confirmed that the fire has only affected warehouse A for fruit, a large warehouse in line, although it is still early to assess the damage and know the causes of the fire.
It is known that the fire has started when there was no activity.
As confirmed by a spokesman for Mercamadrid, in the area where the fire started are the posts of the Hermanos Salas de Toledo companies, with four posts, AZ and Guerrero.
The fire has caused a large column of black smoke, visible for several kilometers.
According to the general director of Emergencies in Madrid, Enrique López Ventura, the fire started around 7:00 p.m., in a building that has two floors: the ground floor and a kind of mezzanine or loft where each fruit stand has its offices upstairs.
"We are trying to stop the spread and save half of the plant," explained López Ventura, an hour before the fire was considered controlled.
“It is being complicated because at the top there is a kind of false ceiling and the structure is metallic, so it is complicated.
You have to be especially careful."
Mercamadrid did not plan to open until Tuesday, since it is closed on Sundays and Monday is a holiday.
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