A British woman caught up in the Almeria wildfire has been confirmed dead after spending weeks battling devastating burns.

It takes the death toll from Andalucia’s deadliest-ever forest fire to 15, with Brits, Belgians, Americans and one Spaniard among those killed.

Michelle Leake died in the early hours of Wednesday after spending almost two months in hospital following the July 9 blaze.

She had been admitted to the Virgen del Rocio Hospital in Sevilla since July 10 and was one of three people who remained hospitalised there after suffering serious burns in the inferno.

Her death was confirmed by sources from the Junta de Andalucia.

Michelle, who had lived in Spain for around 20 years, worked as a carer for elderly people and was looking after a 93-year-old British woman in Bedar when the fire erupted.

Her sister Sharon previously described how Michelle desperately tried to evacuate the pensioner as flames raced towards them.

But their escape route had already been cut off.

Hit by a ‘fireball’

When Michelle realised how quickly the flames were approaching, she attempted to flee Bedar with the elderly woman in a car.

However, the road was already blocked by the advancing wildfire.

Michelle was helping the pensioner out of the vehicle when they were engulfed by what her family described as a ‘fireball’, leaving both women critically injured.

People travelling in another vehicle came to their aid before emergency services were able to evacuate them.

Michelle was airlifted to Sevilla’s Virgen del Rocio Hospital the following day suffering burns to around 40% of her body.

The 93-year-old British woman she had been caring for was taken to Torrecardenas Hospital in Almeria, where she later died from her injuries.

Michelle remained in a serious condition in Sevilla, where according to her family’s fundraising campaign she was sedated and placed on mechanical ventilation.

Her sister had launched a GoFundMe campaign to help pay for what was expected to be a long recovery and the enormous changes to Leake’s life.

Sharon said her sister’s injuries meant she was not expected to be able to return to her work as a carer.

But after almost two months fighting for her life, Michelle has now succumbed to her injuries.

Death toll rises to 15

The devastating wildfire broke out at around 4.30pm on July 9 and spread with extraordinary speed, at one point advancing at an estimated 128 metres per minute.

Twelve people died on the day of the fire, while five others were evacuated with injuries.

Further deaths among the critically injured have since pushed the toll to 15.

Of those who have died, 14 were foreign nationals, including a large number of Britons, as well as three Belgians, one French national and one American. One victim was Spanish.

The victims comprise nine women and six men.

The disaster has become the deadliest wildfire in Andalucia’s recorded history.

Families demand answers

Michelle’s family is among those whose lives have been devastated by the tragedy as questions continue over how residents were warned as the flames swept through scattered communities around Los Gallardos and Bedar.

Relatives of several victims have joined forces through Help Bedar, an initiative raising money towards legal costs as families participate in the judicial investigation into the disaster.

A key issue for relatives and survivors is not simply how the fire started, but how warnings and evacuation instructions were communicated to people in its path.

The Junta de Andalucia has maintained that sending a blanket ES-Alert emergency message was not considered viable because homes in the affected area were widely dispersed and the appropriate instructions differed depending on where residents were located.

The regional government has said residents were informed about what they should do.

However, relatives and survivors have disputed that account, maintaining that they received no instructions telling them whether to evacuate or remain inside their homes.

The circumstances surrounding the fire and the emergency response remain under judicial investigation.