The Civil Guard forensics unit deployed to the Villafranca de Ebro residence (Zaragoza) to investigate the causes of the fire will continue to work for several days. Although the most likely cause of the fire which claimed the lives of ten people – believed to be all due to smoke inhalation – was a cigarette in a room, the investigation remains open.
This was confirmed on Saturday by sources from the Government Delegation in Aragon, who indicated that at present there are no new developments in the investigations. The Civil Guard team, specialized in investigating infrastructure damage and fires, arrived Friday mid-morning at the Villafranca residence and its work was added to that carried out by the Judicial Police.
It was the president of the Aragonese Association for Dependency (ARADE), Paquita Morata, who indicated as the probable cause of the fire that someone was smoking in the room where the fire started, which does not has not been confirmed by the Army Institute.
Previously, the President of the Government of Aragon, Jorge Azcón, had called for caution until the causes that caused the fire were “absolutely confirmed”. “We are going to wait for the reports from the Civil Guard and, when we know them in detail, the families, the residence and all the media will be informed,” he said.
According to the Center’s Internal Regulations, consulted by Europa Press, it is established that smoking is prohibited in the center’s facilities, except in spaces specially designed for this purpose. This is stated in article 14 of the document: “Smoking users must refrain from smoking in the center’s facilities, in accordance with Law 42/2010 of December 30 on health measures against smoking and regulating the sale, supply, consumption and advertising. tobacco products, except in specifically designated areas.
Previous in a residence in Cuarte de Huerva (Zaragoza)
It should be remembered that another retirement home, called Santa Fe, in Cuarte de Huerva (Zaragoza), had already been the scene of a similar episode in 2015, when around midnight on July 11 a fire claimed the lives of eight people and left 12 injured, two of them seriously, one of whom died a few days later.
For this event, a 62-year-old resident, Carmen Alejandre Soriano, was sentenced to 62 years in prison for nine crimes of homicide, nine of wounding and one of arson. The sentence – with a jury – considered it proven that the woman had set fire to the mattress in an unoccupied room, which caused the fire. The reason was a previous argument with his son, whom he had asked to take him to another residence.
The judgment also highlighted a series of non-compliances on the part of the residence managers. Thus, the center did not have a building permit and had “no minimum security”. In fact, the center should have been closed, even if the government of Aragon was not held criminally responsible.
