Cracks Begin To Show As Political Blame Game Begins
Sunday’s tragedy in Tenerife’s Los Gigantes, in which two people died following a landslide, has opened a Pandora’s Box with various government departments trying to pass the buck regarding responsibility for safety measures.
Though much pilloried in the press and by local inhabitants, Santiago del Teide Council have declined to issue a statement until the three days of official mourning are over.
For its part, the Tenerife Cabildo’s vice president, José Manuel Bermúdez, today criticized the Directorate General of Coasts and their “unwillingness to give clearance to the various projects that are to be carried out in the Archipelago.”
Bermúdez said: “The Canary Islands do not deserve to have applications take so long or that so many obstacles are placed in our way.”
National Government representatives meanwhile, responded by saying their position was that safety on the beaches of Santiago del Teide, as elsewhere, is the responsibility of the local authority.
However, the incident at Los Gigantes in Tenerife is not the only one being questioned by the inhabitants of the islands, especially those living in potential danger areas near cliffs.
In the municipality of Agaete in Gran Canaria, local inhabitants live with fear every day, as the cliff face there has developed many cracks, posing a potential threat to people’s safety.
Meanwhile, in the north of Tenerife, at San Marcos beach near the town of Icod de los Vinos, there is a similar situation.
For several years, a large boulder has balanced precariously, in danger of falling at any time.
But the difference between there and Los Gigantes, is that the local authority in San Marcos have already closed off the track beneath the danger zone and relocated local residents before disaster strikes.