Fire in Spanish nursing home kills at least 10

At least ten people have died and two are in critical condition after a fire broke out at a nursing home in Spain’s northeastern Zaragoza region on Friday.

The blaze broke out on Friday morning in the Jardines de Villafranca residence in the town of Villafranca de Ebro, which is located about 20 minutes from the city of Zaragoza.

There were 82 people inside the nursing home at the time of the fire, including residents, nurses and support staff, the local government said. The total number of injuries is unknown, but two people who have been hospitalised are in critical condition.

Firefighters were able to extinguish the fire on Friday morning and its cause is now under investigation, according to local authorities. Health workers, civil protection volunteers, police, psychologists, social workers are all at the scene to provide support.

Regional government official Fernando Beltrán said the fire started in one of the rooms of the residence, and that the deaths were likely due to smoke inhalation.

“It’s a devastating outcome,” he told reporters on Friday morning.

Writing on X, Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said he was “shocked by the tragedy”.

“I hope that the people in serious condition recover as soon as possible,” he wrote.

The fire happened just two weeks after devastating flash floods in the Valencia region killed more than 220 people and destroyed thousands of homes. The flooding was the worst natural disaster in Spain’s recent history. More than half the people who died in Valencia were aged 70 or over, according to newly-released official statistics.