A huge fire has ripped through a multistory block of flats in the Spanish city of Valencia, with shocking video showing desperate residents trying to climb down from their balconies as flames engulf the building.
Local media has reported that several residents are still trapped inside as the fire rages, with witnesses reportedly saying that a father and his teenage daughter were trapped on their balcony.
The fire is believed to have broken out at around 5.30pm and went on to ravage the residential block, which is in the affluent Campanar area in the north of the port city.
The inferno started on the fourth floor and rapidly spread, emergency services said, with dramatic pictures showing flames and towering clouds of black smoke engulfing the building.
The region’s 112 service said 16 teams of firefighters are engaged in tackling the blaze, with their efforts being hampered by the wind and soaring temperatures of the fire.
There was no immediate word about casualties. Local media reports that a field hospital has been set up within the perimeter in case possible victims need treatment.
Firefighters work to extinguish the flames as they continue to rip through the residential block
The cause of the fire is unknown and it is not known if there are any victims
Images showed flames and vast clouds of black smoke engulfing the building
Firefighters have been battling the blaze as it rages through the residential block in the eastern port city
Television images showed the entire facade of the building ablaze as burning segments fell to the pavement below and small explosions were heard inside.
Local media reported several residents calling for help from the balconies of their apartments.
Ana Mari Gonzalez, who works in a nearby clinic, told TVE she could see firefighters working to rescue a teenage boy trapped on the building’s first floor.
