Jeanne Henny, a 74-year-old British woman, described her harrowing escape from a wildfire in southern Spain that has killed at least 12 people. The blaze, which swept through the Bédar municipality in Almería, caught residents off guard with its speed and intensity.
Sudden Danger
Henny, who has owned a house in the hamlet of Los Pinos for 33 years, initially mistook the yellow skies for a calima wind from the Sahara. She noticed smoke and checked a fire-alert app, but the fire seemed far away. “We get fires and there’s some kind of scare most years,” she said. “But this time it didn’t happen like that.”
The gravity of the situation became clear when a neighbor knocked on her door at 5:30 pm, urging her and her friend, who uses a wheelchair, to evacuate. It took Henny nearly half an hour to load her friend, a wheelchair, and two dogs into her car. She had to leave her five cats behind.
Split-Second Decision
Henny drove to the nearby village of Serena, about 1 km away, planning to reach the town of Bédar. However, as she approached a turn, she saw flames surging up a cliff onto the road. “I had to make a split-second decision and do a three-point turn to get away from Bédar,” she said. “The fire was pouring onto the road. I did the turn in one and just made it.”
The maneuver saved their lives. They drove up a mountain and down a rough path for another 5 km to reach safety. Henny later learned that others were not so fortunate. “Some people took the alternative road and they died in their car,” she said.
Deadly Consequences
Juan Manuel Moreno Bonilla, regional president of Andalucía, stated that most of the 12 victims appeared to be foreigners, including hikers. “I think they’ve been caught off-guard in the woods. When there’s a sudden fire … you don’t know how to get out,” he said.
Ángel Francisco Collado, mayor of Bédar, said officials went door to door advising evacuation or to stay put. “Some people didn’t want to leave and they stayed in their houses and are still alive,” he said. But others left too late. “A group of nine people was told to stay put but they didn’t listen. Seven of them are dead and two are on the way to hospital with severe burns.”
Devastation and Gratitude
Francisco Miguel Reyes, mayor of nearby Los Gallardos, described the fire as “fearsome” and said it had “devoured everything in its path.” Henny, speaking as helicopters flew overhead, said she felt “very lucky” to be alive, despite not knowing the fate of her house or cats. “I had an incredible escape,” she said.
