Number of British people killed in Spain wildfires rises to five

Spanish officials have confirmed that five British people have been killed in the wildfires after the identification of more victims.

Another three people were identified yesterday afternoon and officials said one was from the UK.

The identities of the last three of the 13 victims remain unconfirmed, but that is expected to change later today.

Earlier, police said a 93-year-old woman who died in hospital was British and three of the first six identified through DNA tests and matches with loved ones were also from the UK.

They include expat couple Pete and Fran Gillam, whose Sheffield-based daughter Danielle Gillam-Kirton had flown to Spain from her home in the UK after they failed to respond to her messages and public appeals for information on their whereabouts.

She said in an agonising Facebook post yesterday afternoon: ‘Natalie Gillam Lindsay and I are heartbroken to share that we have received confirmation from the police that Mum and Dad did not survive the fire.

‘We are still trying to come to terms with this devastating news and ask for some privacy and time as we process everything.

‘Thank you for all your love, support, and prayers over the past few days. They have meant more to us than we can ever express.

‘We will share further details when we are able.’

The devastating wildfire started last Thursday in Los Gallardos in the south-east Spanish province of Almeria before spreading to neighbouring Bedar where many UK pensioners live.

Confirming the number of British victims had risen to five yesterday evening, the High Court of Andalucia said: ‘During the course of the afternoon, the identification of three more victims of the Los Gallardos fire has been completed. In this case, they are a married couple of Belgian origin and a woman from the United Kingdom.

‘With these three latest identifications, there would be three of the thirteen victims caused by the fire still to be identified, since the British woman who died in the hospital did not need to be identified.

‘The Civil and Investigating Section of the Vera Court of First Instance, Court No. 3, which is responsible for the removal of the bodies, has already confirmed the nine identifications.

‘In total, the victims of the fire identified so far are four men and five women, eight of whom are foreign nationals and one Spanish.

‘Of the thirteen people who died—one of them in the hospital—five were from the United Kingdom, three from Belgium, one from France, and one was a Spanish citizen. All of them were adults.

‘The first six identifications of the victims of the Los Gallardos fire took place this morning. Among those identified were a married couple in which the husband was Spanish and the wife was a citizen of the United Kingdom.

‘A man and a woman from the United Kingdom, a woman from France, and a man from Belgium have also been identified.

‘The victims’ families have already been notified in these nine cases. The notification is carried out in person by uniformed officers of the Guardia Civil accompanied by a psychologist.

Another three Brits who suffered serious burns but survived are believed to be among the four patients airlifted to a specialist burns unit at a hospital in Seville.

A British couple miraculously survived the flames after becoming trapped in a ravine during a hike.

Rescuers found them semi-conscious and with 40% burns on their bodies, but alive near Bedar.

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