We have all been witness to the very uncharacteristic rainfall this winter, which has been with us since the 18th of December on an off – more often ‘on’ than ‘off’. Whilst roads have subsided, houses flooded and crops ruined, up to the last week of February, there had been no fatalities in our neck of the woods. That all changed up in the tiny Alpujarreño village of Rubite on the Monday the 22nd February.
Christopher and Christine Martin had decided to spend some days with another British couple that live in Rubite in a cortijo that was built about 40 years ago. There wasn’t much to do with the rain falling, so the couple were sitting on the couch in the dining room watching television. The hostess, Caroline, was in the kitchen making coffee and her husband was at the rear of the property, seeing to the animals when, with groan, the ceiling came down, killing the couple instantly. For Caroline in the Kitchen, one moment her guests were peacefully watching TV, and the next, they were dead, crushed beneath the concrete beams and masonry. She was very lucky to have escaped a similar fate. Both Caroline and her husband, Stewart, were understandably extremely shocked, according to the Motril fire department, which had attended the emergency call.
It took about half an hour for them to clear the rubble and retrieve the bodies.
The dead couple had lived in La Mamola for seven years, which is just along from Castillo de Baños after Castell de Ferro, where they were very much a part of the community, having integrated very well in village life. Villagers commented how much the couple participated in village affairs, with the wife being an active member of the women’s association there. Both of them were taking adult education classes to improve their command of Spanish.
The family of the deceased arrived from London on the 25th to attend a funeral service, before the ashes were cast into the sea off La Mamola beach.
Both Rubite and La Mamola (which belongs to Polopos) have declared several days of official mourning.
As to the cause, nobody wants to make an official comment until inspectors have had sufficient time to make a thorough investigation into the accident. The main thesis is that earth movements behind the house due the rain added weight to the roof, bringing it down. Although the Motril fire department made an initial comment about inadequate roof structure, which has not been confirmed.