Authorities said the number of missing people remains uncertain until autopsies and the identification of bodies are completed.
People walk around an area in the aftermath of deadly wildfires in Bedar, Almeria, Spain Jul 13, 2026. (Photo: REUTERS/Ana Beltran)
14 Jul 2026 05:15AM
TURRE, Spain: Five Britons, three Belgians and one national each from France and Spain are among the 13 victims of one of the deadliest Spanish wildfires in recent times, authorities said on Monday (Jul 13).The blaze that broke out on Thursday has transformed picturesque rural settlements into ghost towns and left a trail of destruction in the southeastern province of Almeria, home to many foreign residents near the Mediterranean coast.The emergency services initially recovered 12 bodies that were so badly disfigured by the flames that genetic samples were needed to identify them.A technical body responsible for the identification work announced the nationalities of nine of those victims on Monday, including a Spanish man and his British wife.The other victims included three Britons, three Belgians and a French woman, the experts said in a statement after three more victims were identified. Three victims remain unidentified.The number of confirmed UK victims now stands at five, after Andalusian regional authorities said on Sunday that a 93-year-old British woman injured in the fire had died in hospital.British, Belgian and French consular staff were helping to provide genetic profiles from relatives, "therefore the identification of all the victims may be obtained in a short period of time", the experts said.The authorities have cautioned that the number of missing people remains uncertain until autopsies and the identification of bodies are completed.
