On Thursday, the alarm was raised at 3pm to report a large column of black smoke on the road to Sant Antoni, specifically at the location of the shanty town known as Can Rova 2. The Ibiza Fire Department responded with two vehicles, as did agents from the Government's Environment Department, in addition to the Santa Eulàlia Local Police, the Vila Local Police and the Civil Guard. Fortunately, the fire was quickly brought under control and there were no injuries, but it is clear that the disaster could have been much worse given the overcrowding and accumulation of flammable materials. This was something that the City Council of Santa Eulàlia had already warned about, and Miguel Sevilla, head of the Ibiza Fire Department, confirmed this at the scene.
«The problem is that this area has a lot of substandard housing together, with very combustible material. I was on my way to the fire station and I told them and they were already on the move. The progression of the fire at first had very bad color because it was seen that it was within the settlements and luckily it has not been very windy,« said Sevilla, who said that another of the ‘luck’ is that the origin of the fire in one of the shacks was a little separated from the rest: »A lady was cooking, apparently had left the fire and that is where it has started and has progressed. Butane bottles exploded. It was scary because of everything around the fire, everything that was there was combustible.» The chief of the Ibiza Fire Department is clear that it is «a latent risk area because this space is huge».
The nerves and tension among the neighbors of this shanty town were present throughout. A woman who lives there explained to this newspaper that she was at home and suddenly began to notice the smell of burning and that was when she was informed that one of the houses was on fire. At that moment, she did not hesitate and quickly took her two children out of her home, as well as her sister-in-law so that nothing would happen to them.
Apparently, according to this woman's testimony, the fire started where there used to be an exit to catch the bus, but someone wanted to build a hut there. 'We told him it was dangerous because, in case of an emergency, we would not be able to get out if he put up a house. The fire started right in that house,» says the neighbour, who adds that she does not know what caused the fire, but it is clear to her that «something exploded very loudly». 'We have experienced moments of fear and anxiety. I am still in shock,« she says. At the time of the fire, there was a woman and her son in the house where the flames started, and they were able to get out. 'We are afraid it will happen again. Thank goodness it happened during the day; if it had been at night, we would all have been burned,» concludes the neighbour.
Santa Eulària
The area where the fire occurred, of approximately 40 to 60 square meters, would have damaged a caravan, tents, as well as small wooden and plastic constructions.
«The origin of the fire seems to be located in the kitchen of one of the tents, which would have caused the explosion of a butane cylinder and would have also affected a nearby generator. Fortunately, no personal injuries have been reported, however, a family has lost their home. In this case, the Consistory has put at their disposal the help of the social services of the institution, but they have declined to make use of them» specified from the City Council of Santa Eulària.
La Villa del Río warns: «The incident highlights the seriousness of the situation in the settlement that the City Council of Santa Eulària has been denouncing for some time: risks of fire, electrocution and threats to public health. The technical reports of Environment already warned about the high potential for combustion in the area due to accumulated waste, the presence of fuel in generators and the lack of adequate fire prevention and extinguishing elements».
They also recalled that «a report prepared by the municipal technical engineer pointed out that most of the houses built in the settlement were made with highly flammable and unregulated materials (untreated wood, plastics, tarpaulins, textiles and construction debris), which failed to comply with basic safety regulations, habitability, electrical installations, gas and health, representing a real fire hazard».
Carmen Ferrer, mayor of Santa Eulària, recalled that «these same technical reports supported the authorization of the eviction of Can Rova 2 by a judge last April, although hours later it was suspended and, currently, the case is in court». In addition, Ferrer stressed the importance of «taking immediate and definitive measures to solve this problem, which puts at risk the safety and health of many people, as well as the protection of critical infrastructure of the municipality».
Infrastructures at risk
The City Council recalls that, in the event of a fire of greater magnitude, critical infrastructures of the municipality would be at risk, such as the main roads EI-600 and EI-20, the heliports of the forest fire fighting service of sa Coma and the Can Misses hospital, as well as the hospital itself and areas of high environmental value such as sa Serra Grossa (Special Conservation Area) and adjacent green areas, which could affect the municipalities of Eivissa, Sant Josep and Sant Antoni.