Heart-melting moment cat given up for dead in devastating Valencia fire that killed 10 is reunited with its owner after surviving eight days in shell of burnt-out tower block
- Andrea Rubio broke down in tears when pet Coco was found since the Feb. 22 fire
A cat that was reported dead by its owner after the devastating fire in Valencia has been rescued alive by firefighters after eight days in the shell of the building.
Andrea Rubio burst into tears yesterday as she hugged her beloved pet Coco for the first time since the Feb. 22 fire after it was spotted two floors above their 11th-floor apartment, which smelled of smoke but was otherwise alive and well.
Coco’s survival from the tragedy that killed ten people and claimed the lives of about a hundred other pets remains mysterious.
She will spend this evening with Andrea and her partner Javier Fernandez in a temporary shelter provided by the municipality after a routine check by a veterinarian.
Firefighters published photos of Coco in a fire hydrant alcove where the crafty cat was believed to have taken refuge.
Andrea Rubio and Coco with the firefighters. Mystery still surrounds Coco’s survival of the tragedy that killed ten people and claimed the lives of about a hundred other pets
Andrea Rubio burst into tears yesterday as she hugged her beloved pet Coco for the first time since the Feb. 22 fire, after she was spotted two floors above their 11th-floor apartment smelling of smoke but otherwise alive and well.
They had been asked by the owner to retrieve the body if they found it while retrieving documentation and other belongings from gutted apartments.
A spokesman for the Valencia City Hall fire brigade, which is still working on the 14-storey residential estate that went up in flames in the affluent El Campaner district, said: ‘We were recovering belongings and documentation from apartments when we rescued the cat. It was located in an alcove with a dry riser.
‘We handed it over to the owners with great satisfaction.’
A local police spokesperson added: ‘We can confirm that a domestic cat lost in the El Campaner fire has been found more than a week after the tragedy.’
Andrea, pictured taking her cat out of a small bag and giving it water as she cried, was outside when the fire broke out and heard from her mother watching on TV that her house had gone up in flames.
A spokesman for an animal adoption association in Valencia said this morning: ‘Coco’s family lived on the 11th floor and had asked the fire brigade to look for it in case they found his body.
‘They told them the animal was not in the building, but the surprise came when they reached the 13th floor and found Coco with his family.
“We don’t know how you managed to save your life, Coco, but you are a champion and we are very happy.”
Coco the cat. He will spend tonight with Andrea and her partner Javier Fernandez in a temporary shelter provided by the municipality after a routine check-up by a veterinarian
Last weekend it emerged that almost a hundred pets died in the fire in Valencia, as well as ten people, including a family of four consisting of the parents of a newborn baby and a three-year-old boy.
The animals that died included the dog of a Ukrainian woman named Elisa, who went shopping with her partner and was unable to return home after the fire started.
An elderly couple living in one of the 138 apartments destroyed by fire died along with their dog.
The cladding around the apartment buildings is blamed for the speed at which the fire spread, preventing the victims from reaching safety in time.
The investigation into the fire, which started in a vacant flat on the eighth floor, is still ongoing but has already been linked to a likely electrical fault.