Firefighters from the Valencia City Council located a cat this morning that survived the devastating fire at the Campanar residential complex. Coco has been reunited with his owner, Andrea, who received him in tears after she had been told he had died in the very blaze that razed the two apartment buildings.
In a remarkable turn of events, eight days have passed since the fire, and Coco was found hidden in a niche connected to the building’s dry water column, a feature designed to provide firefighters with water access in emergencies. The discovery was unexpected and brought relief to Andrea and the rescue team alike, who had feared the worst for the pet that had been living in the eleven floor apartment before the incident.
According to reports, Andrea resided on the eleventh floor of the damaged building, and the cat was discovered two floors higher. How Coco managed to survive three days amid a warehouse of smoke and heat remains unclear, and externally he did not show any visible injuries, which prompted further veterinary assessment.
Images aired by the public broadcaster À Punt showed Andrea describing the moment she realized Coco was not with her and that the cat was located two floors above her own apartment. She had initially believed Coco perished in the tragedy, a sentiment shared by many pet owners who faced similar losses during the fire. The Environmental Department, through the Directorate General of Animal Protection, is compiling a tally of affected animals and their status in the wake of the disaster. The cat was described as nervous and disoriented, leading rescuers to transport him to a veterinary clinic for a health check and to monitor his recovery as he adapts to the post-fire environment.