Family rescued from flat inferno
Officers praised for bravery in apartment blaze
THE GUARDIA Civil command centre in Alicante reported on Tuesday that four brave officers received hospital treatment after rescuing an 83-year-old woman and two children from a burning apartment in San Vicente del Raspeig on Friday.
According to a force spokesman, the officers had used extinguishers from the local station to tackle the blaze, which originated in the kitchen.
He reported that they received an alert at around 14.00 on Friday (April 22) that a home was on fire in a nearby apartment block.
A patrol and four other officers from the station rushed to the scene.
“Due to the large amount of smoke that was coming from the windows of the fourth-floor flat they decided straight away to break down the door to gain access to the interior so they could rescue the inhabitants,” explained the spokesman.
They found the 83 year old, and children aged nine and 12 inside.
They were not injured and the officers were able to get them out quickly.
The fire had started in a frying pan and spread via an extractor fan in the kitchen.
The officers turned their extinguishers on the blaze in an attempt to douse the flames. Once the fire brigade arrived they went to evacuate around 20 other residents from the apartment block because they had noticed several butane gas bottles in the vicinity.
The firefighters were able to put out the fire and secure the gas bottles, before ventilating the building.
The spokesman noted that four of the six Guardia Civil officers involved were taken to hospital and a private clinic suffering from smoke inhalation.
Following treatment and a night under observation they were all released the next day.