Five injured after air ambulance transferring heart attack patient to hospital bursts into flames in south of Spain

The helicopter fireball incident in Cabra in the Andalusian province of Cordoba which left five people injured on Saturday was caused by an "oxygen leak in the cabin" of the aircraft, according to the Junta de Andalucía regional government on Sunday.

"However, it will be the civil aviation accidents and incidents investigation commission of Spain's Ministry of Public Works who, as an independent body, will determine the actual cause of the incident," added the Junta in a press statement.

"An investigation has also been opened by the 061 emergency health services from the point of view of health care," said the Salud y Consumo department.

"Of the five people injured in the accident, medical and technical personnel from 061 and a local policeman from Cabra, had minor injuries; the patient who was to be transferred to the Hospital Universitario Virgen del Rocío in Seville, needed to be admitted with second-degree burns".

Official sources from the Andalusian regional government have explained to SUR's sister newspaper ABC that the patient was due to be transferred from Cabra to the Reina Sofia Hospital in Cordoba because he needed urgent specialised care. An ambulance from the Infanta Margarita Hospital took him to the football pitch, where the helicopter was waiting.

The doctor, a nurse, the pilot and the mechanic were waiting for the patient, who was lashed to a stretcher. Just as the pilot was ready to take off, a fire broke out for reasons that are currently unknown - the Junta has opened a confidential investigation to clarify the origin of what happened.The helicopter was unable to take off due to the incident, and the flames affected the patient even more because he was immobilised on the stretcher, so the crew and paramedics had to free him in the ensuing melee

"After the quality and safety checks necessary following such incidents,of the aircraft themselves and of the electromedical equipment they contain, and after verifying that there is no issue with the internal oxygen system of the other four helicopters that provide the air ambulance service in Andalucía, these are already operational again to provide cover throughout the region, while the one in Cordoba will be replaced by another aircraft in the coming hours," the Junta de Andalucía said.

The five 061 health emergency helicopters in Andalucía were called out on 2,053 occasions in 2023. The 061 sources confirmed to SUR that, during Sunday morning, all the air ambulances had been groundedin order to assess possible safety risks.

In the case of the aircraft for Cordoba, the same sources have indicated that the province will be provided with a new one this Monday.

Trade union and Junta sources insist that these aircraft "comply with a series of periodic revisions required by law, and with high safety and quality standards".