The number of British people killed in Spain’s recent wildfires has risen to five, officials confirmed on Tuesday, as a survivor described how a fast-moving wall of flame overtook his wife and friends in the Andalusian countryside.
Among the dead were expat couple Pete and Fran Gillam, whose daughter Danielle Gillam-Kirton flew to Spain from the UK after they failed to respond to her messages. In a Facebook post, she wrote: “We are heartbroken to share that we have received confirmation from the police that Mum and Dad did not survive the fire.”
“Five British people confirmed dead in Spain wildfires; survivor describes escaping 'wall of fire' that killed his wife and friends.”
The High Court of Andalucia said three more victims were identified yesterday afternoon, including a British woman and a married couple of Belgian origin. With those identifications, three of the 13 victims remain unidentified, with formal identification expected later on Tuesday.
Earlier, police said a 93-year-old woman who died in hospital and three of the first six victims identified through DNA tests were all from the UK. The identities of the last three victims remain unconfirmed.
The wildfires began last Thursday in Los Gallardos, in the south-eastern province of Almeria, before spreading to neighbouring Bedar, where many British pensioners live. The disaster has also raised questions about a so-called “firewave” phenomenon and the risk of wildfires in the UK, as the country braces for another heatwave.
British pensioner Malcolm Timbrell, 70, who lived in Bedar with his wife Annette Kilgore, survived the blaze. He told the BBC that after the fires broke out, the pair made a split-second decision to return home to pick up their cats, Charlie and Lilly. When he returned to his wife and a group of friends and neighbours, they were out of their cars with a fast-moving wall of fire approaching. He took cover under a car, but the rest of the group “had no chance,” he said.
Danielle Gillam-Kirton, still in Spain, asked for privacy as she and her sister process the loss: “We will share further details when we are able.” Three families now wait for final confirmation of their loved ones’ fate.