Thirty-three arrests, 158,000 ecstasy tablets, ten kilogrammes of speed, two kilogrammes of cocaine, three kilogrammes of crystal meth, 40,000 euros, two firearms, and a tablet-forming machine for pill production. Several phases of an anti-drug operation were conducted by the National Police of Murcia, culminating in the arrest of five individuals and the thwarting of a transaction involving over one hundred thousand ecstasy pills in Torrevieja at the end of last February. The officers employed their service weapons to apprehend the traffickers.

The investigation, which has so far yielded 33 convictions in municipalities in the Region of Murcia and Torrevieja, is being overseen by a Cartagena court. However, the case remains unresolved, and the police are currently in the process of identifying additional suspects. The court in Cartagena ordered that all five of the individuals arrested in Torrevieja be detained in pretrial detention.

The Torrevieja operation occurred at the end of February last year. The National Police were pursuing a suspect from Cartagena whose vehicle had been geolocated with judicial authorisation. Officers monitored this individual, who goes by the alias Peter, as he arrived at the open-air parking lot of a Torrevieja supermarket. They also observed his interactions with other individuals who arrived in various vehicles.

The surveillance was augmented by additional police officers after the officers observed a consistent flow of individuals between the parking lot and a café. Later, an unknown individual arrived at the scene in an Opel Vectra, received directions, and proceeded to a residence on Calle Santa Petra in Torrevieja. Upon arrival, two individuals exited the vehicle, entered the residence, and emerged seconds later with a large bag and two suitcases.

The Opel Vectra continued to drive under the watchful eye of the authorities and subsequently proceeded to Calle Ciprés in the Torrevieja district of La Mata. It entered an underground garage, and a few minutes later, the suspect from Cartagena, who was being observed in the supermarket parking lot, and several other individuals departed in multiple vehicles and proceeded to Calle Ciprés.

Upon reaching Calle Ciprés, they parked outside the garage and the occupants of the vehicles exited. The driver of the Opel Vectra emerged from the underground garage shortly thereafter. After momentarily conversing with Peter and another individual, he entered the parking lot, while the remaining individuals remained on the street, serving as counter-surveillance.

One of the officers on patrol was able to enter the garage through a pedestrian access door and he observed the Opel Vectra’s trunk being tampered with. Peter and his companion exited the garage and hastily made their way to his vehicle a few moments later. The officers were observed by those conducting counter-surveillance while they were attempting to follow Peter.

One of them began to flee, exclaiming, “Run, police, run!” At that moment, Peter extracted a bag from his private parts that contained 91 ecstasy pills of varying colours and logos, including Porsche and Philipp Plein, and flung it to the ground in an attempt to flee in his vehicle.

The plainclothes officers identified themselves as police officers; however, all parties involved obeyed the investigators’ warnings and fled. One of the officers was wounded during the suspects’ attack, and the investigators fired warning bullets to prevent their escape.

The police operation led to the arrest of five individuals, and a search of the car parked in the underground parking lot yielded just over 100,000 ecstasy pills of the same variety as those confiscated from Peter outside. Subsequently, the police conducted further investigations in Torrevieja and confiscated an additional substantial quantity of ecstasy.

On Monday, March 17, at noon, a small van set alight in the vicinity of the petrol station pumps on the road from Santa Pola to Elche, at the exit from the EL-20 highway.

The Provincial Consortium has dispatched two fire personnel to extinguish the fire that has consumed the vehicle.

Fortunately, the fire crews’ prompt response prevented the fire from encroaching on the petrol station premises, thereby preventing a potentially hazardous situation. Consequently, only material damage was documented.

The SATSE Nursing Union reports that the emergency department at Torrevieja University Hospital is “overwhelmed,” resulting in a surge in the number of nurses. Patients are being treated in hallways and waiting rooms.

The union has released a statement that condemns the “serious staff shortage in the emergency department, a problem that has persisted since the beginning of 2024 and remains unresolved.”

They assert that the situation has only deteriorated since that time. “We’re not asking for a fix, but rather a structural increase in the nursing staff to guarantee quality care for patients and decent working conditions for professionals,” the organisation asserts.

Emergency Department personnel at Torrevieja University Hospital continue to be “overwhelmed.” They further state that the current situation involves a “insufficient number of nursing professionals to guarantee adequate care,” as two patients are being treated in the same treatment room (box), while others are being treated in the hallways and others are receiving treatment in the same waiting room.

“The workload is at an unsustainable level, and it is unlikely that the situation will improve in the upcoming weeks,” they lament.

They are now concerned that the pressure on nursing and nursing staff will be further exacerbated by the advent of Easter and summer, without any reinforcement. This could potentially jeopardise the safety of patients and the occupational health of workers.

They discovered that the hospital is experiencing a staffing deficit in emergency shifts, with a shortage of between 14 and 17 nurses Monday through Friday and between 15 and 18 on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, after comparing the staffing standards and recommendations established by the Ministry of Health. Moreover, the TCAE staff shortage is approximately 7 to 10 positions during the week, and 8 to 11 positions on weekends and holidays.

“Despite the seriousness of the situation, we have not received any response from the hospital management,” according to SATSE. In light of the absence of solutions, a second request was submitted on July 11th, 2024, for a psychosocial risk survey to evaluate the health effects of work overload on Emergency Department personnel. However, the request was not resolved.

Although they assert that the department’s management has increased the physician ratio in the emergency department, they have not done the same for the nursing ratio, which is responsible for administering patient treatment and providing front-line care.

The quality of care is being directly impacted by the shortage of nurses, which is the primary concern for healthcare workers. It is “essential” to increase the nursing personnel to ensure that all patients receive adequate care.