A late-night fire at a four-story residential care home in L’Ametlla del Vallès, Barcelona, left 71 people treated for smoke inhalation and required the hospital transport of 11 residents in less-grave condition, according to the System of Emergency Medical Services (SEM). The blaze broke out on Tuesday night on the building’s first floor, triggering a multi-agency emergency response that mobilized 16 SEM units and up to 13 units from the Generalitat Fire Department (Bombers de la Generalitat).
Emergency Response and Hospital Transfers
Emergency dispatchers received reports of the fire at approximately 22:30 local time on Tuesday. First responders deployed an initial contingent of nine vehicles, which was quickly scaled up to 13 units, including seven water tenders, an aerial ladder truck, and five light support vehicles. According to SEM reports, four of the injured patients were transported to the Hospital de Granollers, four to the Hospital de Mollet, and three to the Hospital de Sant Celoni. The remaining 60 individuals received medical evaluation and treatment at the scene for minor smoke-related symptoms and did not require hospitalization.
Evacuations and Containment Measures
At the time the fire started, the residence housed 80 users and six staff members. Firefighters and emergency personnel evacuated residents from the first and second floors as a preventative measure, moving several occupants to a designated safe, smoke-free zone on the ground floor. Heavy smoke also reached the third floor, but firefighters kept the situation contained, allowing residents on that level to shelter safely in their rooms while crews tackled the flames. Firefighters successfully extinguished the blaze on the first floor and remained on site to ventilate the affected areas and check for hidden hot spots.
Official Protocols and Ongoing Investigation
Following the outbreak, Catalonia’s Civil Protection agency activated the Territorial Civil Protection Plan of Catalonia (PROCICAT) to coordinate the emergency response. The operational deployment included two joint teams combining medical personnel and firefighters to manage resident care and facility clearance. Authorities have not yet determined the specific cause of the fire, and an investigation remains underway.
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