Spanish News Today Editors Roundup Weekly Bulletin April 28

FEATURE ARTICLES: "This Monday May 1 is a Bank Holiday in all of Spain!" and "10 tips to save water at home as Spain faces extreme drought"

Goodbye April, hello May! We welcome the new month this Monday with a much-appreciated bank holiday weekend, a rebate on our travel passes and gorgeous sunny weather.

But even as Spain receives a nice little post-Easter tourist bump from the long weekend and those who live here head to the beaches in their droves, the hot weather is actually cooking up a nasty little surprise for us on the horizon… prepare for water shortages, failed crops and food prices that will increase even more than they already are!

Mayday

This weekend is a long one – 3 days – due to the May 1 Bank Holiday this coming Monday. Actually, in Madrid it’s a 4-day weekend since they celebrate May 2 as a local holiday too, to commemorate the Dos de Mayo uprising in 1808.

But for everyone else in Spain it’s just a three-dayer. Not that that’s anything to sniff at. It’s always nice to have an extra day off. Except if you need to do the shopping. Then it’s actually a bit of a pain because most of the shops and supermarkets are shut. As well as stores, many businesses and all schools will be closed for the day.

In reality, there are loads of countries around the world that celebrate May 1 or May Day as a public holiday. Also known as International Workers’ Day or Labour Day (not to be confused with Labor Day in the United States, which falls on the first Monday of September each year), the May 1 ‘festivo’ is known in Spanish as ‘El Día del Trabajador’, a time when working folk are graciously gifted a day off the drudgery.

It is held on May 1 (as opposed to any other day of the year) because it marks several important events in the labour movement throughout history, such as an 1886 general strike in the United States and the establishment of the Second International by the Marxist International Socialist Congress in 1889.

Nowadays, it’s not unusual to see labour unions and workers’ organisations across Spain and elsewhere holding demonstrations, marches and events to raise awareness of the workers’ movement and the rights of employees in the workplace.

Nonetheless, it’s basically up to each individual supermarket and shop whether they want to open on May 1 or not, so if you’re thinking about doing some retail therapy, it’s probably a good idea to phone ahead or go in person to your local store beforehand to check their exact opening times for Monday.

And most importantly of all, enjoy some time off!

Hot and bothered

While the UK, Germany and the Netherlands are all looking at a rainy and dreary end to April, struggling to break above 15ºC, let alone 20ºC, Spain is in the grip of an unprecedented heatwave.

Temperatures in the hottest parts of the country – mainly Seville, Cordoba and central Murcia – are perilously close to 40ºC/104ºF.

Barring a miracle or some dramatic intervention by the weather gods, this month is right on track to becoming the hottest ever recorded in Spain.

Holidaymakers travelling to Spain for the May bank holiday weekend are undoubtedly delighted with this pleasant forecast and while at first this seems like an ideal situation (and it is for many who are in the cooler coastal areas and can pop down to the beach for a refreshing dip in the sea), the truth is that this extended spell of warm weather and the lack of any rainfall to speak of is having serious repercussions.

Yes, it is great news for the tourism industry, but it points to a more sinister effect of climate change as the globe continues to heat up at an extraordinary rate.

Heatwaves and scorching days are nothing new in Spain and over the last 50 years, the number of summer days in Spain has risen from 90 to 145. Tropical nights, where the temperature doesn’t dip below 20ºC, making it next to impossible to sleep, have also multiplied eleven times in the past few decades.

Last summer, with its succession of heatwaves from early June, was the hottest anyone can remember and in the 50-year time period, the average temperature in this country has risen by 3.54°C. In 2022 alone, Spain registered 22,249 extra deaths compared to the expected mortality rate, a staggering 4,732 of which were directly related to the high temperatures.

For that reason, it’s advisable to stay in the shade, not go out during the hottest part of the day (from around 2pm to 6pm) and drink plenty of water, advice that applies especially to young children and the elderly.

The country’s reservoirs are operating close to empty, with threats of hosepipe bans looming, and expensive crops shrivel in the ground and farmers are forced to sacrifice their livestock as there’s simply not enough pasture for them to graze on.

In Murcia and Almeria in the southeast corner of Spain, for instance, the adverse and abnormal climatological conditions have meant disaster for the food and agriculture sector. that 70,000 hectares of vineyards, almond orchards and cereal grains have been practically wiped out. The sheep and goats that rely on those cereals for their feed, meanwhile, are dying in their thousands.

This time last year, farmers were worried about the effect that excessively heavy rains would have on their crops and animals. This year, it’s totally the opposite. Potato crops are also down by around 25% for the year and the lack of supply has pushed prices up by about 44%, but that poor harvest is mainly down to the snap frosts we suffered last February.

In Andalucía, the president of the regional Junta, Juanma Moreno, has warned that if it doesn’t rain by the end of summer there will be no choice but to impose “painful” water restrictions, such as limiting washing and the filling up of swimming pools.

He assured that water supplies for the summer are “guaranteed”, but has said that if it hasn’t rained by September then the region will be in for hard times.

With water restrictions almost certainly a part of the not-too-distant future, it’s more important than ever that we do our bit to conserve this vital resource. And, according to the experts, it doesn’t need to be anything drastic, as little changes can make a really big difference.

First and foremost, it’s vital to have a quick scour of the house and check that everything is in proper working order; even a small leak in a pipe or a drippy faucet can result in a big waste of water, and money, over time.

Those in the know have also recommended turning off the tap while we brush our teeth, take a shower rather than a bath and consider installing a water deposit tank at home to guarantee a continuous supply.

Whether it’s too hot, too cold, too wet or too dry, there’s no doubt that the extremes of climate conditions we’re seeing on an increasingly more frequent basis present a serious danger to our way of life, and if we don’t change the way we’re living soon, change will be forced on us.

All aboard!

So, remember how the Spanish government has made some trains free? You can pay a deposit to get a railcard and provided you make at least 16 journeys (round-trips count for two) then you can get 100% of your money back after four months.

This applies to Cercanías trains (a type of local light overground that they have in Asturias, Bilbao, Cádiz, Madrid, Málaga, Murcia/Alicante, Santander, San Sebastián, Seville, Valencia and Zaragoza), to Rodalies trains (pretty much the same but for Catalonia) and to Media Distancia trains, which make short journeys between nearby cities.

The deposit for a rail pass on the Cercanías and Rodalies trains is just 10 euros, while for the Media Distancia it’s 20 euros.

Well, since the first four months of this year are almost up, it’s time for any passengers who want to benefit from this scheme between May and August – the next four months – to buy their tickets. You can do so at any Renfe self-service machine at a train station, or in person at the ticket office, or online.

As long as you made at least 16 journeys on your travel pass in since January, you can also get your money back. If you paid by card, those 10 or 20 euros will be automatically refunded to your account in a matter of a few days. If you don’t get a refund but think you are entitled to one, go talk to someone at the ticket counter at the station to get help.

If you paid in cash for your rail card, you’ll have to go to the ticket counter anyway and you’ll be refunded in cash there.

Ride on!

Murcia

There are only a couple of weeks left until the fully refurbished Grand Hyatt La Manga Club Golf & Spa resort hotel opens its doors on Monday May 15, after its comprehensive and much-publicised refitting and renovation of the old 5-star the Príncipe Felipe Hotel on La Manga Club.

It’s been a long time coming as the hotel has been closed since the end of summer 2021, when it was taken over by American firm Grand Hyatt. In its former incarnation, the luxury hotel played host to such distinguished guests as David Beckham, Matt Damon and Gloria Estefan.

Now, hoping to recapture that success, the Grand Hyatt has gone all out on its new-and-improved facilities. They’re certainly promising a lot, at least, with a fancy new infinity pool, a fully refurbished spa and gym and a whole bunch of restaurants within easy reach of the hotel.

Actually, the hotel itself has just been given a lick of paint on the outside. Aside from the ‘royal suite’, the same 192 rooms the hotel had before haven’t changed very much, and they’re running the whole thing on a slimmed-down staffing budget, with 400 employees now doing the same job that 700 people did before the redundancy packages of 2021.

One of those who may have been working on the massive refurb of the hotel is a Murcia electrician who, it was found this week, had been wrongfully sacked for drinking on the job, despite having been spotted guzzling beer, wine and spirits during the course of his working day.

According to a court of appeals, the company that hired and subsequently fired the man had failed to prove that he was “inebriated, intoxicated or drunk”, even though they had a private investigator tail him and record that, on one day alone, he had a quick beverage at 8.27am; shared four cans of San Miguel and a litre bottle of Estrella de Levante with a colleague; and had another two beers later that afternoon before returning to the Murcia company’s headquarters at 6.30pm.

The judge in the found that the company could offer no proof that the alcohol had diminished “his physical and mental faculties” or that he “was impeded when he drove the company van at the end of the working day”.

They added that “at no time did the private detective make mentions of signs of inebriation or clumsiness when it came to walking” and that this all transpired in “the month of July in Murcia and Cartagena, where the climatic conditions and the geographical habits should be considered.”

It was a red-letter week for Murcia capital city, which finally introduced its own electric scooter hire service. It’s well behind the likes of Madrid, Paris and London, obviously, which all already have scooters to rent by the minute around the city. In fact, they’re almost on the other side of that particular eco-trend before it’s barely begun, with Paris thinking about doing away with the things altogether.

Sure, they’re electric and green and a good alternative for zipping around the city. But they can also be rented by people of any age and those without any sort of driving experience who don’t wear helmets, and they go really quite fast. The number of people who have been run down, hit or menaced by electric scooters is not insignificant.

Still, Murcia is determined to get in on the act, strewing 400 scooters across 250 parking stations in the city. They can be rented for 25 cents per minute – quite steep when you think that that equals 15 euros an hour, but still cheaper than a taxi.

The idea is that there will be more than 1,000 scooters on the city’s by next year. To reduce the risk of accidents, the minimum age to use the scooters has been set at 18, although in practice that’s very difficult to police.

And as if to prove a point, it took just four days of the new scheme being active for dozens of the personal mobility vehicles to be misused, as they were spotted tossed in the street rather than returned to their docking stations, abandoned in fields and even sunk to the bottom of the fountain in the Plaza Circular.

Some of the scooters have even been taken home by users who thought they could remove the tracker and keep them as their own personal vehicle.

Authorities in Spain are still working on a set of regulations for electric scooters that will include, among other things, limitations and rules for riders. One such measure being considered is mandatory insurance cover for all electric scooter riders.

Finally, you can get down to Los Alcázares this weekend to witness the seaplane festival. The hydroplanes will be landing on the water and will be available to view up close on the beaches before they take off and take part in a unique time trial. The weekend event will also include a talk in English on the development of hydroplanes in the UK, fun activities for the kids and free hot air balloon rides!

Check out our EVENTS DIARY for more events coming up in the Region of Murcia:

Spain

Much like the MOT in the UK, all vehicles of a certain age in Spain have to periodically pass the ITV (Inspección técnica de vehículos) roadworthiness test. As technology advances and safety regulations are updated, changes are applied to the inspection procedure and on May 20, the new revision of the ITV Procedure Manual enters into force. If your test is due after this date, your car will be checked for two new faults.

The new ITV procedures for May include an inspection of the emergency call system (eCall) and OBFCM (On-Board Fuel Consumption Meter), both of which are now mandatory in newly registered vehicles.

The eCall system is a rapid notification device that alerts the emergency services in case of an accident, and during the ITV test the technicians will simply check that it’s working properly. On the other hand, the On-Board Fuel Consumption Meter (OBFCM) collects a range of data related to fuel and electrical energy consumption.

The good news is that the driver won’t have to do anything extra to prepare for the new tests.

‘Silly season’ is already upon us and over-excited holidaymakers never cease to amaze us with their airline antics. This week it was the turn of an easyJet flight from Liverpool to Tenerife, whose pilot was forced to request a rapid landing when a brawl broke out in the cabin among at least 12 passengers.

The identity and nationality of the brawlers haven’t been released by the Spanish authorities but it’s understood they were shipped back to the UK on the next available flight.

easyJet is downplaying the incident but Spanish Air Traffic controllers confirmed that the pilot had to make a swift landing on Spanish soil thanks to “a dozen troublesome passengers”.

And it seems we don’t have to scan the skies to find Brits behaving badly as was proven by one rowdy pair of holidaymakers in Mallorca last weekend. According to local reports, a young Briton was rushed to hospital in the early hours of the morning with part of his earlobe missing and a gash to his neck after a bar room squabble with a fellow UK holidaymaker.

A 35-year-old fellow UK man was arrested for the attack by island police.

The shocking incident occurred at the popular Hotel Club Es Talaial at the Cala Egos beach in the eastern coastal resort of Cala d’Or. The attacker, the victim and his wife were all staying at the same resort and the latter told investigating officers that her husband was slashed during a heated argument about politics in the on-site pub.

Several hours passed between the attack and the arrest as the men were reportedly “too drunk” to notify the authorities, and officers allegedly followed a trail of blood from the victim, who was passed out on a hotel sofa, to his aggressor’s room.

It’s understood the suspect was released from jail but was forced to cough up almost 7,000 euros to recover his passport and return to the UK.

Alicante

Benidorm is perhaps best known for its pristine sandy beaches and rocking nightlife, but the Costa Blanca's tourist capital is shaping itself up to becoming a top shopping destination.

This week, an essential road connection to the planned Marina Baixa shopping centre in Benidorm has been given the green light. The approval, according to Benidorm Town Hall, is “one more step” forwards in the Partial Plan 3/1, which has proposed an impressive shopping centre within the tourist hub itself.

A key factor has been the agreement to construct the future Discotecas road, which will provide an essential access route to the new centre from the N-332 dual carriageway and its connection with the Valencian Community thoroughfares.

In order to complete this road connection, a loan of 18.6 million euros has been fronted by the regional government, a vital fund that will allow the Benidorm authorities to “build a road and a roundabout that will unblock the industrial estate that will bring an undoubted economic benefit to the city".

According to the council, the development of the industrial estate, including the shopping centre, “will lead to the creation of more than 2,000 direct jobs and as many indirect jobs” and “will allow landowners to finally develop their plots”.

If shopping isn’t your thing, how about a relaxing thermal spa break?

The Valencia government has launched its ‘Thermalism 2023’ programme with 8,259 spa vacations for over-65s, subsidised by up to 220 euros each.

The therapeutic use of mineral-medicinal waters is an age-old practice into which complementary techniques from different fields of medicine have been incorporated.

In recent years, the Valencia government has launched its ‘Termalismo Valenciano’ programme of thermal spa breaks aimed at the more mature population, designed to promote active ageing, improve health and prevent dependency.

The initiative offers the opportunity to access spas at affordable prices by providing specific thermal therapies for certain age-related pathologies.

“It also serves as an unbeatable opportunity to relax and socialise,” assures the regional authority.

A relaxing spa break may be the least a doctor would order for one British road rage motorist whose temper escalated to frightening levels on a busy stretch of the N-332 in Torrevieja this week.

Footage emerged of the driver recklessly overtaking another car, despite a double continuous line, and braking suddenly, forcing the now-tailing car and all the traffic behind, to stop.

The furious Brit then jumps out of his car, wrenches open the other motorist’s driver-side door and appears to attack them before stomping back to his own vehicle and driving off.

It’s not clear what caused such an aggressive reaction, but the video shared on SocialDrive’s Twitter profile was viewed 450,300 times in 24 hours.

Un conductor inglés acosa a otro conductor, le obliga a detenerse y le agrede

📹 #N332 Torrevieja, Alicante pic.twitter.com/4x0bl8MNgb
— SocialDrive (@SocialDrive_es) April 25, 2023

In Orihuela, an old building taken over by squatters was gutted in a fire that broke out while crowds gathered for the weekly street market just metres away.

The voracity of the flames and the huge column of black smoke sparked chaos in Calle Castellón around midday on Tuesday April 25, and Local Police were forced to close the street to safeguard residents and people attending the market in neighbouring Avenida Marqués de Molins.

Luckily, nobody was hurt, and an investigation into the cause of the fire is underway.

Andalucía

The autonomous community of Andalucía has not been immune from fires this week either, with parts of the Huelva and Malaga countryside, including the Sierra de Mijas, going up in flames due to the tinderbox-dry conditions of the scrub land.

But while forest fires are fast becoming not only accepted as the norm but a bit of a passé topic, one natural area of Huelva is in the eye of a political storm that has politicians in Madrid and across Spain up in arms.

The Doñana Natural Park is a protected wetland and dune area that straddles the border between the provinces of Huelva and Seville that is home to many species of birds and flora which a recent report found were in a “critical” state.

Undeterred, the regional government has given permission for farmers to increase and expand irrigation operations there to grow strawberries, seriously endangering the delicate balance of wildlife that has already been so badly affected by the water shortages.

Not far away, at that other Huelva natural attraction that many tourists will know so well – the Río Tinto mines with its red-pink waters – Greenpeace has warned that another environmental catastrophe is unfolding as the mining company Atalaya Mining has been given the green light by the Andalucía government to extend its waste dams, creating “the largest deposits of mining waste from Spain”.

At the Feria de Abril in Seville this week, there was jubilation and celebrating by most in the province’s foremost flamenco fair. Complete with lots of food, drink, dancing and horses, it was a return to normality for the fair after the pandemic restrictions.

But it wasn’t fun for everyone. One poor young lady was trampled by a horse and had to be transferred to hospital with a nasty sprain. The rider? None other than the niece of the King of Spain himself, one Victoria Federica de Marichalar. According to onlookers, the royal barely even looked back as her horse rode over the young woman and didn’t stop to ask if she was okay.

Meanwhile, a blaze broke out at one of the stables at the Fair on Wednesday, killing two horses and injuring a young girl and an adult.

Another horse in Seville, one of the ones that pull the city’s famous tourist carriages, dropped down dead of exhaustion and dehydration in the near 40-degree heat this week, prompting renewed calls for the practice of horse-drawn carts to be outlawed, or at least regulated more stringently.

Muere un caballo tirando del carro, y le traen otro de repuesto...

Con las altas temperaturas, 36 grados hoy, y solo dos abrevaderos en el recinto ferial y nada en el trayecto. ¿Esta es la imagen que quieren dar @antoniomunozsev y el @Ayto_Sevilla? ¡Así no!

📹 Rescate de aves pic.twitter.com/EQGuSjyCuX
— PACMA (@PartidoPACMA) April 26, 2023

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