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Date Published: 07/04/2022

ARCHIVED - More sinkholes cause traffic problems: what is wrong with the roads in Murcia?

The recent rains have caused havoc on the roads in the Murcia Region, but why weren’t we prepared? More funding is needed urgently…

<span style='color:#780948'>ARCHIVED</span> - More sinkholes cause traffic problems: what is wrong with the roads in Murcia?

A month of rain has left its mark on the Region of Murcia, and while the weather has dried up for now, the roads are still affected by the deluge.

In central Murcia, in the Urbanisation Torreguil halfway between the capital city and Corvera, a sinkhole opened up on the Avenida Majal Blanco yesterday, Wednesday April 6, after the ground beneath it was eroded away.

The area has been cordoned off and motorists are being warned to drive with caution.

¡ATENCIÓN!
Hundimiento de calzada en avda. Majal Blanco, urbanizacion Torreguil 🚧
Dotación de El Palmar señaliza y acota la zona 🚧

⚠️Circule con #Precaución ⚠️ pic.twitter.com/nMC7MchqwS
— Policía Local Murcia (@MurciaPolicia) April 6, 2022

A similar sinkhole opened up in Mazarrón, on the Calle Sierra de Cazorla near the popular Sagitario restaurant. Again, Local Police have had to place warning signs around the hole in the road so unwitting drivers don’t have any accidents.

On Monday of this week, Mazarrón was the eighth wettest place in the whole country, with an accumulated rainfall of 17.8mm, a deluge which has undermined the infrastructure of the town’s streets.

These incidents are in addition to another large sinkhole that opened last week up on the Camino de Tiñosa by the Reguerón bridge in Murcia city and a landslide that tore a hole in the RM-E22 road between Cartagena and Isla Plana the week before, not to mention various other cracks, potholes, bumps, breakages and imperfections on roads around the Region.

Granted, a month of heavy rain is not usual in Murcia, and it’s only natural that such a large amount of water falling in such a short space of time will have its consequences. But at the same time, the Region is no stranger to sudden, powerful Gota Fría storms, which seem to be getting more powerful and more frequent with each passing year as a result of the climate crisis.

See also: A retrospective of the September 2019 Gota Fría storm and flooding

It’s been made abundantly clear over the last few weeks that more investment is needed in road infrastructure across the whole Region. The flooding is only going to get worse as we go along, and if the regional government and local councils skimp on repairing the damaged roads now, we will surely pay a higher price next year, and the year after that…

Image 1: Policía Local Murcia

Image 2: Policía Local Mazarrón

Image 3: Zoe Cooper

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