Firefighters have finally extinguished the devastating blaze that ripped through central Malaga’s Ibis hotel.
The blaze destroyed Le Grand Cafe on the ground floor after an exhausting 32-hour operation involving dozens of emergency crews.
The fire, which first broke out at 1.26am on Monday morning inside the eatery, was officially declared extinguished at around 9.30am on Tuesday after repeatedly reigniting throughout the day and night.
According to Malaga City Council, firefighters remained on-site overnight with three active crews supported by fire engines, ladder trucks, water tankers and specialist vehicles.
The operation had to be dramatically reinforced on Monday afternoon after flames flared up again around 3.30pm and spread further into the upper floors of the hotel.
At the peak of the emergency, six fire crews, four fire engines, two aerial ladder units and three water tanker trucks were deployed to battle the blaze.
Authorities say approximately 70% of the hotel has been completely destroyed.
The fire initially devastated the restaurant on the ground floor before rapidly spreading upwards through the structure.
Firefighters described the extinction effort as extremely difficult due to the building’s construction.
‘There are bulging façades on the verge of collapsing,’ firefighters told local media.
‘The compartmentalised areas were not properly resolved and that facilitated the spread of the fire.’
The combination of iron structures, timber elements and acoustic insulation materials is believed to have significantly accelerated the spread of both flames and smoke.
Huge crowds of tourists and locals gathered throughout Monday to watch the dramatic scenes unfold in Málaga city centre.
Authorities were forced to close the Puente de los Alemanes bridge for safety reasons, with restrictions expected to remain in place until structural engineers confirm the area is secure.
Around 100 guests were evacuated from the hotel during the early hours of Monday morning after alarms sounded throughout the building.
Despite the scale of the destruction, no injuries have been reported.
Hotel group Accor confirmed all guests were safely evacuated and relocated to nearby hotels across Málaga.
Many evacuees fled with only the clothes they were wearing and remain uncertain whether they will recover passports, medication, money and personal belongings left inside the building.
Firefighters will continue carrying out ventilation work and monitoring for possible flare-ups while technical teams assess the structural damage.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Read more Andalucia news at the Spanish Eye.
