BRITS FLEE COSTA INFERNO
Brit OAP, 93, ‘attacks cops’ during Benidorm wildfire evacuation as thousands of expats run for their lives from blaze sparked by ‘teen arsonists’
Locals say a group of teens are behind the three horror blazes
A BRITISH pensioner aged 93 assaulted cops as they tried to escort him from his burning home as it was engulfed by wildfires on the Costa Blanca.
The OAP was among 2,000 people - including terrified Brit tourists and expats - forced to flee after "suspicious fires" erupted into massive infernos across holiday hotspots near Benidorm.
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The blazes - reported to have been started by teen arsonists - erupted in Javea, south of Valencia, where half of the 30,000 population were born outside Spain.
Police said the 93-year-old man lashed out at cops after he had a panic attack as officers went door to door in a life-saving operation in residential areas of Calistro and Pino Sol, close to Benitachell.
Officers managed to calm him down and guided him to safety.
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The Civil Guard said: “The clearance started with acoustic and light warnings using vehicle loudspeakers but the seriousness of the fire forced officers to go door-to-door getting residents out of their homes.
“The atmosphere was unbearable. The heat of the flames and the smoke left officers having to wear masks and dehydration was another of their worries.
“In many houses people had to be convinced of the danger they were in. Many could not believe what was happening and resisted leaving all their belongings behind.
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“The Civil Guards went from house to house convincing them as if they were psychologists and trying to persuade them that it was best to lose belongings rather than their lives.
“Some of these conversations took place with the flames right behind them.
“So great was some peoples’ desperation that one of them, a 93-year-old English man, went into shock.
“The anxiety the situation left him in made him become violent and he began to attack everyone around him.
“Officers, who understood perfectly the state of nervousness he was in, managed to calm him down, although only after receiving more blows, and finally managed to get him away from the house he was in and help him reach safety.”
Javea, 25 miles from Benidorm is extremely popular with British tourists with thousands visiting every year.
Many expats also live all year round in the sun-filled seaside town also known as Xabia.
Homes in nearby Benitatxell, Tossalet and Cansalade were also evacuated as a precaution by emergency crews.
According to local sources, a group of 15-year-old youths have been arrested over the fires.
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Those who live near where the inferno broke out were rushed to local schools, restaurants and hostels away from the flames for their own safety.
Radio One DJ Chris Stark posted a video on Twitter showing the blaze. In the video, he says: “Take a holiday, they said.“Come to Xabia, it’s a lovely place.
“I’m in Spain and I’m only laughing because I could cry. There’s a fire right now, right behind my apartment. From what I can see, it’s where my car is parked.”
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One British tourist described the scenes as "horrendous".
She added: "I've never seen anything like it. Really scary. Still got helicopters going over with water. Flames were from one mountain to another."
Another wrote on Twitter: "Crazy to see the pictures from Xabia this morning. Praying for safety and swift eradication of the fires."
Stephanie Cooper, 21, from Pinosol - around 25 miles from Benidorm, said the air was heavy with smoke and described hearing explosions.
Police told everyone to leave their homes at around 7pm on Sunday night, forcing people to sleep in cars and emergency shelters.
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Stephanie said strong winds had blown the flames towards her house on Sunday evening. Pictures show her neighbours' garden scorched black, though the house itself was not affected.
Stephanie, who is from Surrey, said she was retreating west to the village of Gata de Gorgos as the fire was "out of control".
She claimed the number of areas being evacuated around Javea was "growing by the minute" and said hundreds of troops and around 20 "air units" were mainly focusing their efforts on Granadella to the south-east.
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Claire Edwards, 39, a presenter on Overseas FM who lives in Javea, said: "This morning it was like waking up in Vietnam with so many aircraft in the skies."
She said more than 1,000 homes were evacuated and said many fires had been extinguished, but the "dry ground" and "stupidly hot temperatures" had led to further blazes breaking out.
Volunteer firefighter Leo Gomez, from Benissa, said a lot of people were made homeless.
He said: "Luckily I do not have housing in the burned area. The experience was very sad to see how something so beautiful is destroyed before you without doing more.
"The feeling of being there was terror, helplessness, fear, a set of bad feelings by not being able to do more - images that will never be forgotten."
Lots of people had to leave pets when being evacuated, she said, with workers at the Apasa kennels staying overnight to look after cats and dogs.
An update on the Apasa kennels Facebook page at around 8am said they were full and that the dogs were all OK.
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Nicola Franklin, who lives in Costa Nova in Javea and owns a clothing shop called Heaven Boutique, described seeing flames "in the distance" on Sunday night but waking up at about "5.30am to the sound of sirens and the flames were much closer".
After being evacuated to a friend's house, she returned in the morning and said: "Everything was charred and smouldering, with no-one around due to the evacuation - it was eerie."
Miss Franklin said there was lots of fire damage to gardens and fences and "signs of scorching" on her shop, but thankfully "the buildings are still standing".
She added: "The local community has pulled together magnificently in true 'Blitz spirit' - people have been opening their homes to those in need, and keeping everyone updated via social media.
";The emergency services have been amazing, including our local Bomberos Voluntarios who worked 18 hours during the night, trying to keep the fire under control.
"The fire has now increased in the Granadella National Park, so we're still waiting to see whether our house will be safe later today."
It's been reported in Spain that at least two dozen homes have been completely destroyed by the fire but that figure is expected to rise.
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Spanish news outlet Diario Informacion claims to have spoken to a researcher who says they have "no doubt" the fire was caused by an arsonist.
The first fire broke out at the Cumbres del Sol at 4.10pm , with the next one starting at 6.30pm in Granadella.
The third fire then broke out at 8.30pm at Playa del Arenal.
The three fires quickly surrounded thousands of homes in and around the town.
Jose Maria Angel, the head of the Valencia region's emergency services, told Spanish radio: "The hand of man again was involved in a very precise way, choosing the hottest day of the year."
Police closed the road between Cansalades and Cami Cabanes, and then evacuated residents in Valle del Sol, Valsol, Pinomar, Pinosol and Tossalet.
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Aircraft have been drafted in to help combat the fire by dropping gallons of water onto the raging blazes.
Spanish emergency crews are still working to bring the fire under control with more than 200 firefighters with 65 vehicles on duty.
The temperature in the area was forecast to reach 36 degrees Celsius (96.8 Fahrenheit), but officials were hoping a stiff wind that has fanned the flames would drop.
Emergency services said they almost brought the blaze under control on Sunday, but then the fire surged again leading to the evacuations.
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Meanwhile, a British pensioner assaulted police who were trying to evacuate him from his burning home after suffering a panic attack, it emerged today.
The 93-year-old lashed out at Civil Guard officers who went door-to-door in a life-saving operation.
The officers cleared houses in the areas of Calistro and Pino Sol close to Benitachell overnight.
A spokesman for the force said: “The clearance started with acoustic and light warnings using vehicle loudspeakers but the seriousness of the fire forced officers to go door-to-door getting residents out of their homes.
“The atmosphere was unbearable. The heat of the flames and the smoke left officers having to wear masks and dehydration was another of their worries.
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“Moreover in many houses people had to be convinced of the danger they were in. Many could not believe what was happening and resisted leaving all their belongings behind.
“The Civil Guards went from house to house convincing them as if they were psychologists and trying to persuade them that it was best to lose belongings rather than their lives.
“Some of these conversations took place with the flames right behind them. So great was some peoples’ desperation that one of them, a 93-year-old English man, went into shock.
“The anxiety the situation left him in made him become violent and he began to attack everyone around him.
“Officers, who understood perfectly the state of nervousness he was in, managed to calm him down, although only after receiving more blows, and finally managed to get him away from the house he was in and help him reach safety.”
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