Residents of the San Antón neighbourhood of Elche have initiated the evacuation of their possessions in anticipation of the demolition of numerous apartment buildings due to the potential for collapse.

On Wednesday afternoon, the residents of Block 8 of San Antón were the first to retrieve their personal belongings. A team comprised of members of the Provincial Fire Consortium and officers from the Elche Local Police began the process.

Documents, money, valuables, and other personal belongings, such as apparel, have been the only items that those affected have been able to retrieve. They were previously informed that they were unable to retrieve heavy objects, such as furniture or large appliances.

The property recovery operation will persist in the afternoons for the next few days until all the residences in the remaining stairwells of Block 8 in the San Antón neighborhood—stairwells 1, 3, and 7—have been completed.

On April 10th, 61 residents were evacuated as a precautionary measure as a result of a substantial fissure in a neighbour’s residence.

This event “marks a before and after” in relation to San Antón for the mayor of Elche. It is a neighbourhood that is unable to wait for the administration’s pacing, as the lives of its residents take precedence over bureaucracy.

Consequently, the Elche City Council has announced that the application period for financial assistance for families impacted by the eviction will continue until May 14th.

These are two lines of aid, each valued at €120,000, that are intended to cover the rental costs of a new home, with a maximum of €9,600 per household, and for the purchase of furniture, appliances, and apparel, with a maximum of €3,000 per household.

“Applications for aid can be submitted online at the Elche City Council website, sede.elche.es, under the “Application for emergency aid for evacuees in San Antón” section, or in person at the OMAC Digital office, located at 22 Francisco Pérez Campillo Street in San Antón. A Social Action professional is available to assist with the process and provide information,” they explained.

Carlos Mazón, the president of the Generalitat, has affirmed that the Consell will allocate 2.25 million euros for the reconstruction of a building in the San Antón neighbourhood of Elche.

As part of an urgent initiative spearheaded by the Consell, 45 new residences will be constructed, with an investment of up to 50,000 euros per unit, according to the Valencian government’s leader.

A business network in Elche has been dismantled, and four individuals have been arrested for defrauding over one million euros in public subsidies from the Valencian Government and the European Social Fund to promote employment. They spent the funds on high-end cars and used them for unrelated purposes.

The investigators became suspicious when the companies promptly dismissed the contracted workers, voluntarily resigned, or ceased operations.

The fictitious contracts were identified as a result of a complaint submitted by the Valencian Employment and Training Service (LABORA) to the Anti-Corruption Prosecutor’s Office regarding potential irregularities.

Public aid was exploited by structured fraud to facilitate the employment of qualified personnel and vulnerable individuals. Despite the initial formalisation of employment contracts, they frequently failed to satisfy regulatory mandates.

The Urban and Economic Crimes Team of the Organic Judicial Police Unit of the Guardia Civil of Alicante has been conducting an analysis of the traceability of the money received for nearly a year. The team has identified transfers between bank accounts associated with the individuals involved and diversions to personal expenditures.

In April of last year, a search of the group leader’s private residence in Elche, as well as certain offices that are still in use in the city’s technology park, turned up €9,000 in cash, a high-end vehicle, and various pertinent documents. The authorities also seized properties and accounts.

The court presented the four detainees and released them after taking precautionary measures against the alleged leader.

They face accusations of money laundering, contract execution failure, membership in a criminal organisation, and subsidy fraud.

The Civil Guard has emphasised the institutional collaboration necessary to combat this type of fraud, stating that “the investigation was conducted under the direction of the Prosecutor’s Office against Corruption and Organised Crime of the Alicante Provincial Prosecutor’s Office, with the collaboration of LABORA.”

The five Blue Flags at Arenales del Sol, Carabassí, El Altet, La Marina, and Les Pesqueres-El Rebollo have been renewed by the Elche City Council.

Tourism Councillor Irene Ruiz expressed her enthusiasm for the awards’ renewal, emphasising that “Elche’s beaches are the stars once again this year.” She also emphasised that this distinction underscores the quality, management, services, and safety that all of the beaches provide.

Annually, the Association for Environmental and Consumer Education (ADEAC) awards blue flags as one of the quality and environmental certification distinctions. This designation is based on a variety of criteria, including environmental management, water quality, swimmer safety, beach services, and environmental information and education.