Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Remembering the firefighters and volunteers who died on September 11
Today too marks the 23rd anniversary of one of the most tragic fires in the Canary Islands.
On September 11th, 1984, a fire in the Los Roques area of San Sebastián in La Gomera took the lives of 20 people, among them then Civil Governor, Francisco Afonso.
As has become tradition, Francisco García, who works as a chauffeur for the La Gomera Island Corporation and who was an eye witness of the fire, has today visited both the San Sebastián cemetery and the monument at the Roque de Agando that was built in memory to those who participated in fighting the fire, to lay two wreaths in honour of the victims.
The young workers and volunteers died on September 11th, 1984, while they were working to extinguish the fire that had broken out in the late afternoon, in the area of La Laja and had spread during the night to the area of Las Nieves. By morning, the fire was practically controlled, although winds blowing upward from Los Roques were causing difficulties. They were surprised by a strong gust and were unable to evade the flames.
Although fires have since burnt larger areas, causing terrible environmental damage, such as the fires this summer in Tenerife and Gran Canaria, no other has caused the serious loss of human life as the 1984 fire in La Gomera, which remains in the memories of families on the island.
Este martes se cumplen 23 años del trágico incendio en el que perdieron la vida veinte personas
