MALAGA firefighters are locked in a relentless battle against the gutted Hotel Ibis structure after another column of smoke emerged from the ruins on Sunday.
The fresh flare-up marks the fourth time hidden hotspots have reactivated since the initial catastrophic inferno began one week ago.
Local emergency services have now been operating at the site along the central Malaga street of Pasillo de Guimbarda for seven consecutive days.
The latest column of smoke is a result of the immense trapped heat load and the reactivation of specific hot spots within the building structure, according to municipal sources from the Malaga Town Hall.
Firefighters confirmed that the blaze remains technically controlled, but crews are forced to carry out continuous cooling and prevention work from the exterior due to severe interior risks.
The latest fire has re-emerged on the top floor of the hotel, creating a highly complex situation for the emergency teams.
The upper storey is exceptionally difficult for firefighters to access because it is impossible for teams to physically without putting themselves at undue risk.
As a result, firefighters can only attempt to suffocate the flames by tackling them entirely from street level outside the building.
The unrelenting crisis has triggered a furious response from striking firefighter representatives.
Union members confirmed that an additional deployment had to be dispatched to support the permanent, exhausted skeleton staff who have been stationed at the hotel for a week.
The Encierro Bombero Malaga campaign group launched a scathing attack on Malaga Mayor Francisco de la Torre and Public Safety Councillor Avelino Barrionuevo.
A partial collapse of the first-floor floor framework has already been detected, alongside extensive damage to the upper storeys.
The danger of collapse on these floors has restricted the ability of crews to safely go in and and manually douse and remove the deepest burning embers.
The initial fire broke out at around 1.20am on Monday, 25 May, inside the ground-floor Le Grand Cafe before rapidly tearing through the upper hotel floors.
More than 100 hotel guests were forced to flee into the street after the building activated its self-protection plan, with all evacuees subsequently realigned to alternative local accommodation.
To protect the public from falling debris and unauthorized entry, the owners of the building erected a secure perimeter fence around the site over the weekend.
The municipal council has implemented a pedestrian closure in the surrounding zone, completely blocking foot traffic along the riverbank between the Puente de la Aurora and the Puente de la Trinidad.
A permanent firefighting deployment consisting of a fire engine, an aerial ladder platform, and a supply tanker remains stationed at the scene on Monday morning to douse ongoing hotspots.
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