Laurence Dollimore
THESE are the first images of what remains of Laguna Village following a devastating fire this afternoon.
Photos released by the Consortium of Malaga Firefighters show several roofs completely destroyed and the inside of at least one establishment reduced to rubble.
The Junta de Andalucia declared a Level 1 emergency at 3.20pm this afternoon when the fire began in the Rio Padron area.
According to INFOCA, the strong winds carried the flames across the A-7 motorway and to Laguna Village, a large complex comprising restaurants, bars, shops and the luxury Puro Beach pool club.
It means the fire is now on two sides of the A-7 motorway, with the Glass Palace club and adjoining Collection World garden centre also surrounded by flames.
What’s more worrying is the proximity of a BP petrol station which sits across from Laguna Village on the otherside of the A-7.
At least three helicopters, a fire truck and 30 firefighters are battling the blaze.
There are also several paramedics on site to assist with potential injuries.
“The fire arrived so quickly and spread so fast, it was crazy,” one witness told the Olive Press, “Everyone just started running and we could hardly see anything.”
There have been no reported injuries as of yet.
Were you at the scene of the fire? Contact newsdesk@theolivepress.es
