A BRIT man who survived the Spanish wildfires in a car said he watched his wife “walk out in front of the firewall” – and fears she had “no chance”.
Malcolm Timbrell’s home in Bédar was consumed by flames last Thursday evening, killing 13 people, as fires swept expat hotspots in Almería.
Malcolm Timbrell, 70, and his wife Annette Kilgore, 69, lived in the village of Bédar Credit: BBC News
Malcolm and Annette’s home covered in ash after the flames tore through the village Credit: BBC News
The 70-year-old expat and his wife Annette Kilgore, 69, had found the property on the Channel 4 programme A Place in the Jattvibe.
He told the BBC: “You’d never imagine it could happen.
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“And when it does, and you’re the only survivor, then you’re left in a situation of, ‘What can I do?’”
Bédar was at the epicentre of Thursday’s wildfire – one of the deadliest in Spanish history.
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Malcolm, Annette and 12 of their friends had just seconds to flee.
As the inferno raced towards their hilltop home, the group decided to escape by car.
But Malcolm said he ran back for their cats Charlie and Lilly.
He told the outlet: “If we’d have done the sensible thing and gone the other way and let our cats die, we both would be alive.
Burnt out homes filled with debris littered the village after the fire Credit: BBC News
Eight bodies were found on a path near to where Malcolm was rescued by emergency crews Credit: BBC News
“But when you’ve got animals, you don’t think like that.”
Once back outside the house with both cats, Malcolm described a chilling scene.
The group had stopped and were standing outside their vehicles.
“My wife and our other seven friends and neighbours – against me screaming at them not to – decided the only safe way was to walk out in front of the firewall”, he said.
Malcolm later heard the flames were ripping across the land at a terrifying 20km per hour. “They had no chance”, he said.
Now alone, Malcolm ran to the abandoned cars for safety from the oncoming blaze.
Four of the six cars instantly combusted, but he managed to survive huddled in “the last one with a cat”, he said.
Malcolm was rescued by emergency crews after the flames had passed – but the bodies of eight people were discovered on a nearby path.
The wildfires ripped through Almeria and claimed at least 13 lives Credit: PA
Two people walking through the devastated wasteland left behind after the deadly blaze Credit: Reuters
Now he must wait for DNA results to confirm the identities of the bodies.
“After that, I will probably just fall apart”, he told the outlet.
Malcolm said he had an “amazing life” with Annette, his wife of 17-ears, who he described aas “happy” and “outgoing” person.
The wildfires have been some of the worst that Spain has ever seen – with more than 16,000 acres burned to the ground and 1,448 people evacuated.
Four bodies found in a burnt-out wreck of a car are also believed to be Brits.
The burnt-out shell of the Honda Accord had a steering wheel on the right-hand side and was discovered on a deadly “trap” route in Los Gallardos.
The total death toll rose to 13 after it was announced that a 93-year-old Brit pensioner died late on Saturday.
It comes as Brits caught up in the deadly blazes in southern Spain blasted authorities for giving “no warning”.
Spanish authorities have claimed many of the dead did not follow official advice.
Survivor Bob Layton, originally from Birmingham, said he had lost friends in the tragedy.
He said he was “sick to the back teeth of hearing that people didn’t follow the ‘designated escape route” and claimed there was no warning given about the inferno.
