Wildfire in Almería kills at least 12, trapping residents in 'hellish night'

A night of terror unfolded in Almería, southern Spain, as a fast-moving wildfire claimed at least 12 lives. Regional president Juan Manuel Moreno Bonilla described the blaze as a "major tragedy" and one of the most rapid and complex fires in recent memory. The inferno, which reportedly ignited from a fallen electricity cable around 5 p.m. Thursday, consumed grasslands and advanced an astonishing 15 kilometers in just two hours. High winds, gusting up to 50 kilometers per hour, fueled the flames, creating a deadly dilemma for residents: stay in their homes or attempt to escape by car. In the town of Los Gallardos, preparations for local festivities were abruptly halted as ash rained down. "They were putting up the party lights and the workers had to stop completely because all the ash was falling on them," recounted Ana, a supermarket owner, to the local newspaper Ideal. As the fire raged, the mayor of Bédar, Francisco Collado, and his team used megaphones and church bells to warn residents, urging them to evacuate. However, a group of nine people attempting to flee via a dead-end road found themselves surrounded by flames. "We found them around four in the morning," the mayor said, his voice heavy with emotion. "The others, they died." He confirmed that one victim was Spanish, and the rest were foreign nationals, primarily Belgian and British, whom he knew personally. "I married some of them," he added.