Costa Blanca
Alicante is one of the Spanish provinces with the highest number of mountain rescues

This year, there have been around fifteen mountain rescues in the province of Alicante, including one that resulted in a deadly accident. Similar to 2024, the Provincial Firefighters Consortium’s Special Rescue Group (GER) responded to up to six events that happened on the summits of various municipalities and regions in January of last year.
In addition, there have been numerous evacuations in the mountains of the province of Alicante in February, including the helicopter search for a woman, the death of a hiker, and injuries to cyclists. In contrast, there were none during this time last year.
Alicante is clearly one of the provinces with the highest number of deaths and rescues in the mountains, ranking fifth in terms of evacuations and among the top four in terms of fatalities, according to the 2024 total balance compiled by La Gistería. Six of the 61 interventions that the various rescue organisations and security agencies visited over the course of the previous 12 months had fatal outcomes.
In May of 2024, the first fatalities in the Alicante mountains took place. In July and August, there were two more fatalities. Another fatality occurred in October, and December was a terrible month with two more. One of the casualties was female, while the victims’ ages ranged from 40 to 71.
In the highlands, two of the six fatalities happened in the Xàbia municipality, which is close to Granadella. A heart attack claimed the life of a 60-year-old guy, while a cardiorespiratory arrest claimed the life of a 70-year-old hiker. Falls were the cause of two further recorded deaths in the l’Alacantí region. A 71-year-old man from Cabeçó d’Or was involved in the first case, while a guy who had fallen from the Serra Grossa in Alicante was involved in the second. A 64-year-old man fainted on the way to Pico del Águila in Callosa de Segura, and another 45-year-old woman fell in Altea, adding to the litany of catastrophes.
55 rescues concluded with the word “life” for the victims, according to statistics gathered by La Gistería. But among the causes, falls accounted for 27 interventions, injuries or injured ankles for 9, disorientation for 4, falling on rocks for three and falling on rocks for the same amount, and heat strokes and knee injuries for two. The remaining ones were brought on by bad weather, disappearance, heart attacks, thirst, and discomfort.
36 men and 17 women were evacuated in 2024, with the rescued individuals ranging in age from 20 to 84. The Montgó Natural Park in the Marina Alta was the location of the most interventions in the province, with a total of eleven. The Peñón d’Ifach, which saw five rescues, and the Puig Campana, which saw four interventions, come next.
Maritime Rescue responded to 422 crises.
Rescues occurred in the waters of Alicante as well as in the mountains. According to Salvamento Marítimo, there were 422 emergencies in the previous 12 months in 2024. According to the organization’s overall balance, 1,341 persons received assistance, and 305 were rescued on their own.
Additionally, they report that 228 out of 356 boats had emergency situations involving leisure vessels, accounting for 50% of those helped, while 25% were in dangerous or overcrowded vessels. They claim to have used their own resources to save 287 individuals in 17 tiny boats.
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Costa Blanca
Sticky Vicky’s daughter quits mum’s iconic Benidorm show

Adhesive the stage act has been sensationally abandoned by Vicky’s daughter, who has followed in her late mother’s footsteps, thereby leaving behind her family’s Benidorm legacy.
The unexpected decision was made after María Gadea Aragón assumed responsibility for the adult-themed magic performances following the passing of her mother, Victoria María Aragón Gadea, in 2023 at the age of 80.
María, who had been employing her mother’s stage identity in the well-known Spanish resort, has now discontinued her performances after a decade on stage.
María performed frequently at venues including the Palladium, Zodiaco, and Rockerfellers, as well as Benidorm which is a popular destination for British expatriates and vacationers.
Des Bellamy-Wright, an employee at the Benidorm Palladium, verified that María is no longer employed in the lively Spanish city. Des stated, “Sticky Vicky is no longer operational in Benidorm.” The ‘Carmen Snake – Sticky Show’ is a similarly entertaining program that is broadcast every night at 12:45 a.m. “
The official reason for Maria’s retirement was not disclosed, and her final performance was in November 2024.
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Elche’s H&M shop closing

The Swedish retail chain H&M announced in 2024 that it would be reducing the number of stores and employment it has in Spain due to “organisational, productive, and economic” reasons. Around 50 layoffs were the result of the closure of stores in the L’Aljub retail centres in Elche, Ociopía in Orihuela, and Habaneras in Torrevieja, which had consequences for the province of Alicante.
Additionally, these were the sole instances in the Valencian Community that were impacted. The Torrevieja store was the first to shut its doors in May 2024 since that time. The Orihuela store was subsequently closed on September 14th of the same year. Currently, the Elche store has shuttered its doors. The facility was closed to the public on March 14th, following its final day of operation on March 11th. It will be entirely shut down on March 22nd. Approximately 20 employees are being laid off at this Elche store. It is the final establishment in the province of Alicante that will not reopen, and the circumstances of the dismissal were negotiated in October. The employees have departed the company with an agreement as a result of these negotiations, according to Yolanda de la Casa, the general secretary of the CCOO Services Federation in Alicante.
The dismissal terms that were established following the October negotiations were 45 days until 2012 and 33 days until the present. A gratuity of 3,500 euros was granted for the first five years, 4,000 euros for the next ten years, and a maximum of 4,500 euros for the subsequent years.
Furthermore, three relocations have occurred among the 50 individuals who were laid off in the province, spanning Elche, Orihuela, and Torrevieja. Lely Fernández of UGT l’Alacantí-La Marina informed this newspaper that these were part-time employees from the Habaneras shopping centre in Torrevieja who were transferred to the La Zenia shopping centre, which continues to operate and is accessible.
H&M initiated 2024 by announcing the closure of 28 stores and approximately 588 collective redundancies. The figure was reduced to 521 reductions in a subsequent revision.
The Torrevieja store closed its doors to the public on May 17th, 2024, and the lease expired on May 24th, never to be reopened. Nevertheless, numerous employees at this establishment were granted the opportunity to relocate to other nearby stores that were still operational. In September 2024, Ociopía followed suit, and Elche followed suit in March 2025.
The H&M group operates over 100 stores and employs nearly 4,000 individuals in the country. This decision was made by the Scandinavian company in order to “adapt and perfect” its stores in a “changing” shopping environment for its consumers. Additionally, Spain would be responsible for 17% of the brand’s global closures, as indicated by the data that the company disclosed months ago when it presented its 2023 financial year.
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Man stole fire extinguishers to sell as scrap metal

A 20-year-old male is currently under investigation by the Guardia Civil for the purported theft of ten fire extinguishers. The fire extinguishers were discovered by Seprona officers during an inspection of a scrap metal establishment in Torrevieja. The store manager and the criminal are both the subject of an investigation.
The fire extinguishers, which were in near-new condition and completely charged, were discovered by the Servicio de Protección a la Naturaleza (Seprona) officers during the inspection. The investigation was initiated due to the fact that this material is “uncommon” in this form of business, as explained by sources from the Armed Forces.
Upon discovering the fire extinguishers, the officers enquired about the scrapyard manager’s documentation regarding the extinguishers’ arrival. The manager responded that he did not possess any proof of ownership. Additionally, he disclosed that a woman and her son had abandoned them there without his permission.
The company responsible for maintaining the fire extinguishers was identified by Seprona officers after they analysed the evidence and proof acquired. This verified that the extinguishers were located in a building in Torrevieja. The missing equipment was reported by the property manager of this community of proprietors shortly thereafter.
Fire extinguishers were recovered
Officers were permitted to confiscate the fire extinguishers and transport them to the Torrevieja Civil Guard barracks as a result of the formal complaint. Upon verification of their origin, they were returned to their legitimate owners.
The individuals implicated have been identified as a result of the operation. The 20-year-old man who is supposed to have stolen the fire extinguishers is being investigated for theft, while the 23-year-old proprietor of the scrap yard is being investigated for receiving stolen goods.
The Guardia Civil emphasises the necessity of reporting these types of incidents and reminds all individuals of the significance of doing so. In order to prevent the acquisition of stolen material, scrap metal dealers must establish rigorous controls, such as document checks on sellers and items received.
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