Overnight fires in Ceuta destroy over 40 migrant shacks and multiple vehicles

Destruction at the Naves del Tarajal settlement

Emergency responders in Ceuta mobilized shortly before midnight on Thursday to contain a fire at the informal migrant camp outside the Naves del Tarajal warehouses. The blaze destroyed 42 tents and shacks situated in front of the facilities near the holding area, burning through plastics, waste, and personal belongings. Approximately 200 people, consisting primarily of Moroccan families with young children who had waited over a month for placement in official reception facilities, were evacuated from the site. Firefighters from the Ceuta Fire and Rescue Service (SEIS) required nearly two hours to bring the flames under control. No personal injuries were recorded during the incident, and the fire did not reach the structural walls of the warehouses or nearby public schools such as Príncipe Felipe and Reina Sofía.

Suspected origins and community tensions

Officers from the National Police and Guardia Civil opened investigations to determine whether the fire resulted from carelessness or deliberate arson. Police investigators currently treat an accidental origin within the camp as their primary working hypothesis. Several residents at the scene stated that the flames may have started from candles brought from a memorial at Plaza de África. Arguments broke out among camp residents on Friday morning as several families blamed other occupants for causing the fire, while municipal cleaning teams worked to remove ash and debris. Military personnel and local police cordoned off the adjacent road to establish a secure perimeter and block public access during the emergency response.

Multiple vehicle and dumpster fires across the city

The blaze at Naves del Tarajal occurred alongside a series of fires across Ceuta during what the fire department described as a terrible night. Firefighters responded to incidents involving eight vehicles across different sectors, including calle Francisco Javier Sauquillo, Phase 2 of the Polígono, the IES Abyla parking lot, a location next to the El Conertín nursery, and the city centre. Fire crews also put out four burning dumpsters, two of which were in Los Rosales and two in the Juan Carlos I neighbourhood. At 04:30 on Friday morning, emergency units extinguished another fire near Polígono Díaz-Flor that destroyed several vehicles and a dumpster, following earlier vehicle fires on the Reina Sofía esplanade in the Príncipe district.

Arrests and prior security incidents

Authorities arrested an employee of the municipal cleaning company Servilimpce in connection with fires in Polígono Virgen de África that burned several cars, a truck, and waste containers. The worker, who was placed in judicial custody, faces accusations relating to multiple incidents during the week that damaged containers, cleaning gear, and construction materials. No arrests have been made regarding the Tarajal camp fire or an earlier assault on Tuesday, when masked individuals threw stones at the settlement and shot a six-year-old boy named Ali with a pellet gun while his family slept. The attack prompted a police complaint stating the assailants shouted threats in Darija warning they would burn the camp. Earlier in the week, a fire on Tuesday consumed 10,000 square metres on Monte de la Tortuga, and another brush fire on Thursday afternoon burned near Trampolín beach close to the CETI migrant centre. Emergency service calls to 112 in Ceuta have risen by 150% following the irregular entry of approximately 80,000 migrants on 30 July.