A Coruña
Firefighters Prevent Eviction Of 86-Year-Old Aurelia Rey
By Huffington Post
Firefighters in the Spanish city
of A Coruña took a stand and thumbed their noses at authority on Wednesday,
refusing to break down an apartment door to evict a woman in her eighties.
HuffPost Spain reports the city's
firefighters refused to kick in Aurelia Rey's door
after activists and supporters had rallied near her home to prevent the
eviction. The firefighters were later seen supporting a sign saying "Stop
Evictions" from their truck.
Rey, 86, has been living
in her apartment in the center of A Coruña since 1979, El País notes. The
octogenarian survives on a monthly pension of 356 euros -- a third of
which she pays in rent. Rey's closest relatives live in Buenos Aires.
El Correo Gallego reported that
Rey was offered two different social housing units, but declined them, as they
would force her to move far from her current neighborhood. Surrounded by
supporters, Rey told reporters on
Wednesday that she was "tired" but "well."
Wednesday's incident was the
third attempt by officials to evict the woman.
On Thursday, the firefighters
union of Catalonia expressed its support for the firefighters who handled Rey's
case in A Coruña, saying it will no longer aid in evictions. EFE reports that
in a statement, the union stressed it will only force residents' doors in cases of emergency,
"as the law dictates."
The growing number of evictions
has been one of the most painful results of Spain's burst housing bubble and
economic crisis. According to numbers reported by the Associated Press, more than 350,000 Spaniards
have received eviction notices since the beginning of the crisis in 2008.
Despite a government promise to
end evictions of families in need, a worrisome number of Spaniards have chosen
to commit suicide rather than be forced from their homes. Last week, four Spaniards facing eviction took
their own lives. The Associated Press explains that evicted homeowners in Spain
remain liable for huge payments, even after eviction.