The bereaved daughter of a British couple who died in a Spanish wildfire is calling on the foreign secretary, Ed Miliband, to get answers from Spain’s government about why her parents were not told to evacuate until it was too late.
Severe wildfires have burned across Spain and France since early July, killing people, destroying thousands of homes and forcing more than ۳۰۰,۰۰۰ people to flee.
Pete and Fran Gillam, who lived in Bédar in Almería, died in mid-July while fleeing their home as a wildfire tore through the village. They were among ۱۳ people killed in the fires, many of whom died in their cars as they tried to escape.
Danielle Kirton, ۴۲, an assistant headteacher from Nottinghamshire, has spent the weeks since her parents died looking for answers. She knows her mother would have followed official advice had she have been given it.
Though the fire alert came at ۴.۳۰pm, the evacuation order did not come until more than three hours later. Kirton said this was delivered by a lone police officer, who was “frantically driving from house to house” and Spain’s official emergency alert system, which plays a loud noise on mobile phones and tells people to evacuate, was not used.
“My mother sent me a video at ۶.۴۵pm showing the fire a considerable way away from the hill where they live,” Kirton said. “She didn’t sound worried or concerned. I kept in contact with her and she sent me a message saying at ۷.۵۳pm that they’d evacuated.”
However, the decision to evacuate was made tragically late. “They stopped at a neighbour’s driveway to shout to a neighbour they needed to evacuate, but then they became trapped as the fire had jumped on both sides of the road.”
There are now other wildfires burning in much of Spain and south-west France, but there have been no civilian casualties so far. In the small village where her parents lived, ۱۳ people died. “It would appear that somewhere within that system there has been a failure. If you look at the subsequent wildfires in Spain, there have been no casualties and the biggest difference is the emergency alert was used in subsequent wildfires,” Kirton said.
She said her mother loved living in Bédar and as a retired headteacher took much joy in organising quiz nights to fundraise for the local school. She had a bag packed and she was ready to evacuate. “She was just waiting to be told what to do,” Kirton said.
Spanish politicians have claimed that those who died ignored instructions. “My parents did not ignore instructions. My parents would have not had an issue with instructions in Spanish,” Kirton said. “My parents heeded advice to shelter in place, until they were then told that they needed to evacuate.
“They took the correct route, and their only route, to the evacuation point. It is a weak and cowardly act to blame victims in the face of tragedy.”
The response from the Foreign Office has been a “slap in the face”, she added. “The help from the consulate has been nonexistent. We got sent a link: ‘What to do when someone dies abroad.’ That is it. It is a slap in the face, to be honest.”
Miliband has been visiting France and Spain to discuss wildfires and the climate crisis with political leaders. Kirton said: “As UK citizens, it is important to ask for his support in asking Spanish authorities to conduct a full and thorough investigation.”
Scientists say the fires have been worsened by the climate crisis, which has intensified the recent heatwaves. Kirton said this makes it more crucial that lessons are learned so no one has to go through what she has.
“It’s vital for planning for the future that we see what exactly were the contributing factors in this case,” she said. “It’s a perfect storm, the weather, the climate, the vegetation, the wind. My parents weren’t concerned before – it isn’t something they felt fearful of, it wasn’t something that happened where they lived.”
Kirton has been working every day since her parents died trying to get answers and a substantial response from the Spanish authorities. She said: “My mum and dad would have always spoken up for what’s right and if I can do anything for them it’s that we can ask for the truth and ensure this never happens again to any other families.”
The Andalusian government has been contacted for comment.
A Foreign Office spokesperson said that any investigation into the fire response is a matter for the Spanish government: “The foreign secretary has been in regular contact with his Spanish counterpart, including during his visit to Madrid on Wednesday.
“They discussed how the UK could support Spain’s response, ensure British nationals receive the right advice and assistance, and agreed that lessons must be learned as climate change makes these dangerous wildfires more likely.
“Staff at our embassy have been working with the British community in the affected area, collating their questions and concerns and raising them with the Spanish authorities. This work is ongoing.”
