Police arrest two men as suspected perpetrators of Spanish wildfire
Investigation points to negligence while carrying out prohibited activities amid extreme fire risk
The Civil Guard in Toledo has arrested two men, aged 51 and 42, as suspected perpetrators of the Almorox fire that later spread to the Madrid region. Evidence gathered by the Civil Guard points to negligence while carrying out activities that were forbidden due to extreme fire risk.
Sources close to the investigation consulted by EL PAÍS say the detainees were carrying out welding work on a plot within a forested area in the Toledo municipality. Those works were prohibited at the time because the wildfire spread index in that area “was extreme.”
“As a result of the investigations conducted, the point where the fire started was located, and conclusive evidence was found of recent welding work on a metal structure located on forest land,” the Civil Guard stated in a press release.
The arrest took place at 8.55 a.m. in Almorox and the suspects will be brought before a judge today, specifically Court No. 2 in Torrijos, which is handling the case. The fire began in a residential development in the town and then spread to the Madrid municipality of Villa del Prado, where it merged with two other fires affecting the area and later formed the large Sierra Oeste de Madrid blaze, now the largest in Spain, which has affected more than 60,000 hectares between Ávila and the Community of Madrid.
The investigation was conducted by Seprona agents and members of the Environmental Agents Corps of the Toledo Provincial Delegation for Sustainable Development. In the press release, the Civil Guard notes that, as a result of the fire, several residential developments and towns had to be evacuated, and that there was extensive property damage in both communities.
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