Silence Follows Thunderous Explosion in Ibi

Contained emotions and silence prevailed. This was the general atmosphere around the industrial warehouse of Climber SA in Ibi this Wednesday at noon. Around that time, a thunderous explosion startled the residents of this municipality in l'Alcoià, heard up to at least a kilometre from its epicentre. This was explained by the owner of a bar located at that distance from the site, who wanted to approach the scene of the tragedy to understand what had happened. He was among the few willing to share their impressions.

Dozens of people watching from the Avenida del Juguete preferred not to make any statements to the numerous journalists present. Many of these onlookers were employees of the company itself, as indicated by their work overalls. The law of silence prevailed among them. Nearly 40 workers were inside the warehouse at the time of the explosion. José Manuel was among them; one of the three fatalities of the tragic boiler explosion.

The impressions of those affected were heard by Red Cross technicians, who arrived shortly after 12 noon. Their task was to support and accompany colleagues and families of the three deceased victims in their grief.

Among those present at the scene were two of the new consellers from the renewed Consell of the Generalitat Valenciana. One of them was Juan Carlos Valderrama, appointed by Mazón to lead the Department of Emergencies and Interior, created to anticipate disasters like the recent DANA in Valencia, which claimed over 220 lives.

Accompanying Valderrama was also Marián Cano García, the new head of Innovation, Industry, Commerce, and Tourism, a portfolio that has in the industrialised Ibi, the capital of the Toy Valley, one of its main assets.