Two women died in a brothel fire and a man was hit by a train in Bellpuig.
The police investigation suggests that the fire was accidental, although the police do not rule out that the incidents are related.
BarcelonaTwo women have died, one has been critically injured, and six other people have suffered minor injuries in a fire at a nightclub in Bellpuig (Urgell), according to the Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police) and the Generalitat (Catalan fire brigade). The report of a fire at the Estrellas club, next to the N-II highway, was received at around 9:30 a.m. on Saturday. Shortly after, at around 10 a.m., just a few meters from the burning building, a man was fatally run over at the Bellpuig train station as he attempted to cross the track at an unauthorized crossing.
The Mossos d'Esquadra (Catalan police) have opened two investigations to clarify the causes of both incidents and are working to determine whether the fire and the accident may have some connection. For the moment, the police are not ruling out any hypothesis, although initial investigations suggest an accident. Initially, it was suspected that both incidents might be related, as they occurred in nearby locations.
The distance between the burned-out premises and the station is just over 50 meters. Furthermore, both events occurred less than 20 minutes apart. Bellpuig is a "fairly peaceful" town of just over 5,000 inhabitants, and police sources told ARA they "suspicions" that the two incidents might be linked in some way. The police investigation, which is still ongoing, will determine this.
Shortly after 9:30 a.m., the Fire Department sent up to eleven firefighters to the scene, a brothel on Avenida de Lleida in Bellpuig. The emergency services received an alert about a fire affecting the ground floor of a two-story building and have deployed around twenty personnel—including seven water trucks—to work to extinguish the flames.
Six slightly affected
Firefighters reported that the fire was already fully developed when they arrived, and they attempted to rescue two people who, according to six witnesses who were able to get outside on their own, were trapped inside. (SEM) treated the other six people, with minor conditions: three were transferred to the Mollerussa CUAP (Center for Emergency Situation) and the other three to the Arnau de Vilanova Hospital. One of them is a woman in critical condition. The origin and causes of the fire are unknown.
The acting mayor of Bellpuig, Imma Oliva, explained that the establishment had been open to the public for more than 10 years, had its documentation in order and its license renewed, and was working with a dozen people.
Accident a few meters away
Five minutes before 10:00 a.m., the police were also notified of a collision at Bellpuig station, which forced the closure of services on Cercanías Lleida lines RL4 and RL3 between Mollerussa and Tàrrega. According to Renfe and Civil Protection, a person crossed the track at an unauthorized crossing near the Bellpuig stop. Although the person was treated by the Emergency Medical System (SEM), they ultimately died. According to Oliva, the person was believed to be homeless.
The affected train, on line RL4, was stopped in the area with 110 passengers on board and had to be evacuated. Train service through Bellpuig was restored in the afternoon, around 7:00 p.m. official in China– with the mayor of Bellpuig, Jordi Estiarte, to find out the details about the fire, as he wrote in a message on the social network X. Illa has sent his condolences to the families and neighbors of the victims and has wished a speedy recovery to the injured.