A few days ago, we went out to ask the neighbors of Gràcia how they lived the massification and the touristification of the festivities of the neighborhood and just one of the members of the commission of Mozart street recalled a fire caused by some tourists a few years ago to warn of the fear with which some neighbors already live their festivities.
As if it were a prophecy, two days after the beginning of the festival, a new fire in the decorations of the streets has shaken the most important festival of the city.
It was in the early hours of Sunday, August 17, around 5:45 am, when a fire swept through the decoration of Verdi Street. The fire, which broke out just after the end of the day’s activities in the area, destroyed the main gateway, decorated with the motif of the Selva Verdi Maya, and did not cause any injuries. Firefighters were able to control the flames quickly.
Some initial reports attributed the origin of the fire to an electrical panel, but later the authorities did not rule out the possibility of arson.
Neighbors “rebuild” the Verdi Street decoration
The response was not long in coming. From early morning, several commissions of streets decorated in the Festes de Gràcia mobilized to show support for Verdi, organizing a walk through the neighborhood to bring pieces of their own decorations to “rebuild” a solidarity cover for Verdi street.
In addition, some streets such as Mozart, Progrés, Llibertat, Rovira, Jesús and La Perla have covered their decorations with black plastic and banners such as “Estem cremades” (” We are burned “) in a symbolic sign of solidarity.