British Couple Found Severely Burned as Wildfire Kills 12 and Burns 6,600 Hectares in Almeria

Civil Guard officers found a British couple semi-conscious and severely burned in a ravine near Bedar, Spain, while searching for wildfire survivors on Thursday night. The pair had been hiking when the blaze trapped them. Sergeant Pedro Barre said the officers first heard a distant sound they mistook for an echo.

Experience led them to search again, and they climbed down a hillside to reach the couple. Burns covered 40 percent of the victims' bodies. Rafael Zea, another officer in the operation, said calling out in their condition was a titanic effort.

Barre added that officers will never forget the look of surprise and emotion on the couple's faces. A two-hour rescue followed to move them to intensive care. The Independent reported that the wildfire has killed 12 people and burned 6,600 hectares of southeastern Almeria province since Thursday.

At least 1,400 residents have been evacuated, and more than 500 firefighters and emergency workers are fighting the flames. Eight people injured in the fire, four of them severely, remain hospitalized in Seville. Forensic scientists in Madrid are using victim samples and DNA from families of the missing to identify the dead.

Seven people are formally missing. Antonio Sanz, head of emergencies in the Andalusia region, said Saturday that the fire remained complex and continued to advance even as winds eased. Firefighters had prevented it from crossing a highway toward coastal towns, he said, allowing crews to shift from defense to attack.

The Civil Guard arrested two people on Saturday on charges of serious disobedience for returning to homes against evacuation orders. Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will visit the area on Monday.