A total of 25 people evacuated due to the fires affecting Aldea del Fresno, Villa del Prado, and Cenicientos are staying at the Municipal Sports Centre El Pijorro in Navalcarnero, where they receive psychological support, food, and clothing.
The Municipal Sports Centre El Pijorro in Navalcarnero has become an improvised refuge for residents evacuated due to the fires ravaging the southwest of the Community of Madrid. In its facilities, located at Calle Juan Antonio Zenón, 90, mattresses, blankets, and a hot meal service prepared by the municipality's senior citizens' dining room have been set up. There, about 25 people are waiting for news on when they can return to their homes.
José Luis Gómez Arribas, coordinator of the municipal Civil Protection service of the Navalcarnero City Council, explains that in recent days more than 60 evacuees have passed through the facility. Most are from the towns of Aldea del Fresno, Villa del Prado, and Cenicientos, the most affected by the fire. Some have managed to stay with family or have been referred to hostels and resources from the Community of Madrid, but those who remain in the pavilion are trying to maintain a routine while the emergency continues.
“They are eager to return home and worried about how their homes will be,” summarises Gómez. The wait is experienced with anxiety, especially among families with children and elderly individuals. The municipal facility offers psychological support, and volunteers and municipal workers attend to the basic needs of the evacuees.
Among those sheltered are Manuel and María Ángeles, a couple from Cenicientos who have been married for 47 years. They arrived on Saturday after being evacuated, having first passed through Maqueda. “They have welcomed us wonderfully,” says María Ángeles, although the worry does not disappear. Her husband nods: “Yes, they are taking very good care of us.” The couple has two dogs and a cat that was left outside their home. “Tomorrow I will go for the cat and bring it inside,” she explains, awaiting permission to feed her pets.
With them is their son Manuel, 37 years old. Like many others, they left home in a hurry, with only what they were wearing, not knowing how long they would be away. From the facility, they indicate that some have received clothing, although not always in the right size. Some are already planning to go shopping for basic items at the Xanadú shopping centre. “Not out of whim, but because the emergency is also measured in small details: a clean t-shirt, forgotten medication, a change of clothes, or comfortable shoes,” municipal sources explain.
The reception in Navalcarnero functions as a small chain of care. The senior citizens' dining room prepares an average of 20 meals daily and adapts the food to the evacuees' needs. “Every day we send the menu and ask them what they want,” details Gómez Arribas. Additionally, restaurants and residents of the municipality have offered to help with sandwiches, coffee, or anything else that is needed.
The wildfires, which began last weekend, have forced the evacuation of hundreds of people in several towns in the southwest of the region. The Community of Madrid continues to deploy firefighting resources, while the evacuees hope that the evolution of the fire will soon allow their return. For now, at the Navalcarnero sports centre, the question is repeated at all hours: when will they be able to return home.
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