A lucky escape for couple as flames close in on villa

JAVEA residents Christian and Martina Le Caillon were out when fire broke out on scrubland behind their villa on Calle Mar de Noruega on the upper slopes of Urbanisation Rafalet.
Christian, first to spot the smoke from the road, raced towards home as neighbours called the fire brigade. Martina arrived home shortly afterwards as worried residents gathered outside police cordons last Thursday.
Flames could be seen shooting high into the air as the Le Caillons’ British neighbours arrived. Anxious about their two dogs, the couple quickly grabbed their pets from the smoke-filled villa and left the fire service to do its work with the help of a helicopter equipped with a water bucket.
Martina told Euro Weekly News: “It was terrifyingly fast and nobody knows how it started. The Gata de Gorgos firefighters were absolutely wonderful, so prompt and so thorough, staying most of the night to make sure not a spark remained.”
Local residents expressed some concern that plots which are de-urbanised carry a real risk of fire. “When the land has not been cleared and cleaned, it is so inflammable,” said Martina, “I think the council should do something about that.”
This time, the fire left residents with only a sleepless night and a major clean-up. “We were so lucky,” said Martina, “Lucky that the firefighters were so quick and efficient, lucky that we were not all fast asleep when the fire started and lucky no one was hurt.”