An 84-year-old man has died after a butane cylinder exploded at his home in Aspe (Alicante, 21,941 inhabitants), where he was with his 55-year-old son, who suffered second and third degree burns in a 60% of his body and has been transferred by helicopter to La Fe Hospital in Valencia.
The deceased's 82-year-old wife was also in the same place, who had to be treated for an anxiety attack.
A 26-year-old neighbor and two local police officers who came to help the affected family have also had to be treated for smoke inhalation, and are recovering in the hospitals of Elche and Vinalopó.
The Civil Guard is investigating what happened to try to clarify the causes of the incident.
The explosion took place around 2:40 p.m. and caused a large fire due, according to the firefighters of the Alicante Provincial Council Consortium, to the large amount of belongings housed in the home, a two-story building located in Pasos Street, a slope that goes up towards the Cruz del Calvario and a very popular hermitage among the Aspenses.
The mayor of the town, Antonio Puerto, details that “after the explosion, a neighbor came to rescue the family and is the one who took out the father [named Manuel],” who finally died.
Two Local Police officers have also intervened, “who are the ones who have helped the mother”, transferred to a health center in the same municipality, “and the son”, evacuated after performing various advanced life support maneuvers and being stabilized. for medical services, as indicated by sources from the Emergency Information and Coordination Center (CICU) of the Valencian Community, which has sent two SAMU units, a Basic Life Support unit (BLS) and a medical helicopter.
A municipal ambulance took the neighbor, a 26-year-old young man, to the Elche Hospital, who tried unsuccessfully to save the life of the older man, while the two Local Police officers went to the Vinalopó Hospital in Elche for his injuries. own means.
The firefighters have immediately undertaken work to control and extinguish the flames, accompanied by an abundant column of smoke, which have devastated the home.
The fire was extinguished three hours after the incident, at 5:54 p.m.
Civil Guard members from the Aspe post are already investigating the origin of the explosion, although everything points "to a gas leak from a domestic cylinder," says Puerto.
The mayor assures that the population, which today celebrated the local Jira festival, is dismayed, since both the deceased, Manuel, and his family were well known.
“They have always been linked to the festival of the Cross,” a pilgrimage that passes through the door of his home and is celebrated on the eve of Holy Week.
“The neighbors are already saying that this year's edition may be suspended,” Puerto advances, “out of respect for the family.”
For now, the City Council has declared a day of mourning for the death of its neighbor Manuel.