A janitor named Julián who worked at the apartment complex that caught fire last Thursday in Valencia (Spain), leaving at least 9 dead, helped save several people from the place, a neighbor told the Antena 3 network.
“He has been a beautiful person for us throughout our stay,” said about Julián, the Venezuelan Jesús Antonio, 76, one of the neighbors who was able to escape unharmed along with his wife and who asked that the Government recognize the work of the janitor. by awarding him a medal.
A person waits to be rescued on a balcony of a burning building, in Valencia, Spain, on February 22, 2024. Associated Press
Furthermore, 'Totoño' - as they affectionately call him - recalled that Julián has made his family's life very easy six years ago, when they came to live in that complex of 138 homes in the Valencian municipality of Mislata, which was devoured. by the fire in just half an hour since it originated inside a property.
“He has gone door to door, removing the neighbors
,” explained journalist Manu Marlasca to the Telecinco program 'TardeAR', citing accounts from several witnesses to the fire.
Juan Antonio regretted that, when he left his house in a hurry with his wife, he could not get his Venezuelan passport, which took him a year and a half to obtain.
He now hopes that a safe that was in his home survived the fire.
“I spent the night cuddling with my wife after 50 years of marriage,” he said.
The fire was so voracious that several parts of the building were detached for several meters around.
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An entire family died
The Government delegate in the Valencian Community, Pilar Bernabé, stated during Friday morning that four of the deceased
are part of the same family
:
father, mother, a three-year-old child and a newborn baby.
“In a first inspection we can confirm that the scientific police have located ten fatalities,” said Bernabé in an appearance from the Advanced Command Post and added that there are at least 15 injured, including seven firefighters;
nine of them were admitted to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Four of them have already been discharged.
However, hours later, various media outlets cited the scientific police assuring that the death toll had been corrected and that there were nine victims -unidentified so far- and that one person was still missing.
The confusion would have originated after the agents identified a single victim as two different people, explained the Spanish newspaper ABC Noticias.
Located people
The authorities also reported that four people were found alive, although it is not ruled out to find more dead in the burned building.
The Military Emergency Unit (UME) reported in its X account that it was ending the missions assigned in the fire.
In addition, Red Cross teams reported that they treated 63 people (11 firefighters) related to the incident.
Five of Spain's main insurers told the newspaper El País that they have begun efforts to advance compensation to several of their clients who have lost their homes in the fire, which covers half of those affected.
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Fernando Vigara, member of the Safety and Fire Protection Commission of the Official College of Industrial Engineers of Madrid, told Europa Press that there is no risk of collapse.
“Most likely not, the structure is not damaged enough.”
The authorities indicated that there is an open investigation to determine the structural damage to the building, practically destroyed at a glance, and to establish the details that led to the fatal outcome.
The president of the Generalitat of Valencia,
Carlos Mazón decreed three days of mourning throughout the Valencian Community and announced that they are coordinating the establishment of
economic measures for those affected
by the fire for the purchase of essential goods and the purchase of homes, among others.
For his part, the President of the Spanish Government, Pedro Sánchez, traveled to the area from where he sent his “empathy, affection and solidarity” to those affected and has promised “all kinds of help.”