Firefighters are unable to determine the origin of the fire on Verdi Street.

BarcelonaThirty-six hours after the fire ravaged the main entrance to the curb on Verdi Street in Gràcia, the mystery surrounding its origin continues. The Barcelona Fire Department's report concludes that "the causes cannot be determined," according to sources from the Catalan capital's City Council. Initially, this Sunday, city council sources suggested that the fire had started accidentally in an electrical panel on the street, but later qualified their position and said it was still too early to draw conclusions. Now, the fire department's report confirms that they cannot determine the cause of the incident.

Although it was initially gaining ground, the hypothesis of a fault in the electrical panel that sparked the fire has faded in recent hours. Sources from Endesa explain that the fire did not originate in the company's low-voltage box on the street because "it never stopped working." "If something fails or there's a spark, the box stops working immediately," the same sources explain.

Now it remains to be seen whether the theory defended by the residents from the beginning is correct: that the fire was intentional. In conversation with ARA, the president of the Verdi del Mig festival committee, Sergi Font, was convinced of this hypothesis. He maintained that he was the architect of this part of the trim and argued that it was "impossible" that it had burned "as it did" accidentally, taking into account the materials used. In 2019, another arson fire burned 40 meters of the curb on Libertad Street.

With firefighters ruling out any conclusions about the origin of the fire, the ball is now in the court of the Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police). Police sources confirm that an investigation is open into this case and that it is being led by the Gràcia investigation unit.

Solidarity from the rest of the streets

The fire on Verdi Street has shaken the Gràcia Festival, which this Sunday was filled with posters urging respect for the street decorations. In addition, the other streets participating in the competition—the winner will be announced this Tuesday—organized an event in support of Verdi and placed a figure of their own street decorations on the site where the burned portion of the decoration had been.