By Nina Lopez and Emma Pinedo
BEDAR, Spain July 13 (Reuters) – Six victims of one of Spain’s deadliest wildfires on record have been identified, authorities said on Monday, as forensic teams continued efforts to confirm the identities of six others through DNA analysis.
The victims include a married couple from Spain and Britain, authorities said. The other identified victims are a British man and woman, a French woman and a Belgian man. All were adults.
A seventh identified victim was a 93-year-old British woman, who died in hospital on Sunday from burn injuries, bringing the death toll to 13. Seven other people were injured in the blaze, which has scorched about 7,000 hectares (17,300 acres).
The Belgian man who was identified was 63-year-old businessman Stanislas Verdonckt, who had attempted to flee the area via a mountain track but was engulfed by flames, his sister, Sophie Vandebroek, said in an email.His dog Schubi was also found close to his body, she said.
Spain’s deadliest wildfire in more than four decades trapped residents in a rugged area with scattered homes as they attempted to escape the flames on Thursday night.
Spain and much of Southern Europe face increasingly severe wildfire seasons that scientists have linked to climate change. Experts say unusually heavy spring rainfall this year spurred vegetation growth across parts of southern Spain, creating abundant fuel that later dried out in extreme summer heat, helping the fire spread rapidly.
Officials expect the remaining six victims to be identified in the coming days after relatives provided biological samples, with assistance from Belgian, British and French consular authorities. Authorities say 10 people are still missing, although some of those could be among the bodies not yet identified.
Investigators said DNA analysis remains the only viable primary identification method because of the condition of the remains.
Andalusia’s regional government on Monday lowered the wildfire alert to the pre-emergency phase after the blaze was stabilised, evacuation orders lifted and residents were allowed to return to their homes.
(Reporting by Emma Pinedo and Aislinn Laing; editing by Charlie Devereux and Hugh Lawson)
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