A high-rise fire in Spain’s 3rd largest city killed ten people on February 22nd. The fire began on the fourth floor of a 138-unit apartment complex that consisted of two towers, one 14 stories tall and the other somewhat shorter, joined by a “panoramic lift”. In a 2007 promotional video, the building’s developers reportedly cited the use of an “innovative aluminum material” that was used to clad the building, and some initial reports of the fire drew comparisons to the 2017 Grenfell Tower fire in London in which the polyurethane-filled exterior cladding led to a rapid involvement of the building and 72 deaths. Representatives of the polyurethane industry, however, were reported as saying that no polyurethane was present in the Valencia cladding. No reports have yet been made as to the cause of the fire.

The European Fire Sprinkler Network (EFSN) initiated a campaign in 2020 to expand the use of automatic fire sprinkler systems in Spain, with the protection of high rise buildings as a main priority. The IFSA provided three years of grants to assist the effort, including the hiring of regional representative Alfredo Alvarez, after which sufficient stakeholders were found to continue the campaign. Alvarez has worked to increase awareness of the value of fire sprinkler systems by writing articles, presenting position papers at conferences, producing a video explaining how sprinklers improve building safety, and even persuading the MAPFRE Foundation (affiliated with a major Spanish insurer) to build a mobile sprinkler demonstration unit. A review of the Spanish fire code is expected in 2024, which should provide an opportunity to improve protection and help prevent tragedies such as has now taken place in Valencia.