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Infrastructure at breaking point? from the Coastrider (their words not mine before the shreiking and denials start !)
Last Thursday’s downpours brought with them the usual sewage misery for many citizens of Orihuela Costa, however, there was evidence throughout the area that the fragile infrastructure could be at breaking point, with flooding that forced the closure of at least two roads, and manhole covers popping open in several locations.
Calle Lapislazuli in La Zenia suffered in the usual way, with giant manhole covers bursting at their bases to enable stinking sewage water to escape onto the street, and onwards towards the beaches. This time, Coastrider saw clear evidence of excrement, and a dead rat which had been forced up onto the street by a sewage network completely unable to cope. Manhole covers elsewhere burst open, including around Villamartin, Playa Flamenca, and near Via Park III. Those are just the ones we witnessed with our own eyes.
One motorist had a lucky escape when driving downhill towards the underpass opposite Playa Flamenca Town Hall. They misjudged the extent of the flood, and the car quickly became submerged under several feet of water. Witnesses saw a Cruz Roja rescue boat at the scene, and one Spanish man told Coastrider the same thing had happened to him a few weeks ago, when he unwittingly drove into the same underpass following rainfall. He complained that there is no sign to warn motorists of the depth of floodwater after it rains. The unfortunate driver of the submerged vehicle on this occasion was no longer at the scene.
The coast road alongside La Glea beach, Campoamor, was flooded to the extent that the tide of floodwater was slapping with full force against incoming waves. Again, there were no signs to warn motorists of the dangers on the road after rainfall, although motorists were sensibly turning around and making the detour along the N332. In addition, the secondary school at Playa Flamenca was closed for two days to allow for assessment of the damage to prefabricated classroom buildings.
The rain lasted for several hours, although it is certainly not the heaviest rain experienced here on the Orihuela coast.
Members of the independent political party, CLARO, who have long campaigned for urgent attention to the inadequate sewage system, were at various locations in Orihuela Costa on Thursday. In a press release, CLARO said: “The photograph of the day is surely the car submerged in water up to its windows just under the noses of the Town Hall in Playa Flamenca. Few of us have seen such a dramatic illustration of how badly and dangerously Orihuela Costa is affected by flooding which is largely the result of overbuilding, including, blocking and building on barrancos -the natural pathways for surface water to reach the sea - and an almost non-existent drainage system for surface water. Among the multitude of promises in the ruling Popular Party’s election manifesto in 2007 is the commitment to “Reactivate the rainwater collection project” for Orihuela Costa. The need for a rainwater collection project could not have been more dramatically and directly shown than by the rains on 20 N ovember and their consequences.”
While the politicians continue to scratch their heads, spare a thought for Wally Tynan who lives on Calle Lapislazuli. He told Coastrider: “I’ll have to clean the street while it’s still wet, it’s easier to remove the excrement that way. And then I’ll concrete the base of the manhole cover to stop the smell seeping out, although only lightly because I have to make sure that when it rains again the sewage comes out on the street, and not up through my downstairs toilet.”
Rebecca Griffin
Last Thursday’s downpours brought with them the usual sewage misery for many citizens of Orihuela Costa, however, there was evidence throughout the area that the fragile infrastructure could be at breaking point, with flooding that forced the closure of at least two roads, and manhole covers popping open in several locations.
Calle Lapislazuli in La Zenia suffered in the usual way, with giant manhole covers bursting at their bases to enable stinking sewage water to escape onto the street, and onwards towards the beaches. This time, Coastrider saw clear evidence of excrement, and a dead rat which had been forced up onto the street by a sewage network completely unable to cope. Manhole covers elsewhere burst open, including around Villamartin, Playa Flamenca, and near Via Park III. Those are just the ones we witnessed with our own eyes.
One motorist had a lucky escape when driving downhill towards the underpass opposite Playa Flamenca Town Hall. They misjudged the extent of the flood, and the car quickly became submerged under several feet of water. Witnesses saw a Cruz Roja rescue boat at the scene, and one Spanish man told Coastrider the same thing had happened to him a few weeks ago, when he unwittingly drove into the same underpass following rainfall. He complained that there is no sign to warn motorists of the depth of floodwater after it rains. The unfortunate driver of the submerged vehicle on this occasion was no longer at the scene.
The coast road alongside La Glea beach, Campoamor, was flooded to the extent that the tide of floodwater was slapping with full force against incoming waves. Again, there were no signs to warn motorists of the dangers on the road after rainfall, although motorists were sensibly turning around and making the detour along the N332. In addition, the secondary school at Playa Flamenca was closed for two days to allow for assessment of the damage to prefabricated classroom buildings.
The rain lasted for several hours, although it is certainly not the heaviest rain experienced here on the Orihuela coast.
Members of the independent political party, CLARO, who have long campaigned for urgent attention to the inadequate sewage system, were at various locations in Orihuela Costa on Thursday. In a press release, CLARO said: “The photograph of the day is surely the car submerged in water up to its windows just under the noses of the Town Hall in Playa Flamenca. Few of us have seen such a dramatic illustration of how badly and dangerously Orihuela Costa is affected by flooding which is largely the result of overbuilding, including, blocking and building on barrancos -the natural pathways for surface water to reach the sea - and an almost non-existent drainage system for surface water. Among the multitude of promises in the ruling Popular Party’s election manifesto in 2007 is the commitment to “Reactivate the rainwater collection project” for Orihuela Costa. The need for a rainwater collection project could not have been more dramatically and directly shown than by the rains on 20 N ovember and their consequences.”
While the politicians continue to scratch their heads, spare a thought for Wally Tynan who lives on Calle Lapislazuli. He told Coastrider: “I’ll have to clean the street while it’s still wet, it’s easier to remove the excrement that way. And then I’ll concrete the base of the manhole cover to stop the smell seeping out, although only lightly because I have to make sure that when it rains again the sewage comes out on the street, and not up through my downstairs toilet.”
Rebecca Griffin
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