A lightning bolt struck a catamaran anchored in Cabo de la Huerta in Alicante’s Sidi region, scaring the four British tourists onboard.

The ship was outfitted with a lightning rod on its mast, and all four crew members were uninjured. Maritime Rescue aided the crew and took them and the ship to Alicante port yesterday afternoon, Wednesday May 14th.

The lightning hit had an impact on the vessel’s electronic equipment, which was 14 metres long and eight metres wide. When the navigation systems failed, a distress call was received. The Salvamento Marítimo vessel Salvamar Leo set off from its base in Alicante around 5:00 p.m. to tow the catamaran.

The ship was anchored at Cabo de la Huerta, and because the electrical system could not be used to raise the anchor, they had to do so manually.

The Maritime Rescue personnel assisted the catamaran’s occupants and then pulled the yacht at a leisurely speed to the Alicante marina, where it docked this afternoon.

A resident of Playa de San Juan said that the boat had been anchored near Cabo de la Huerta for several days, while another recalled hearing a tremendous thunderclap around three p.m.

The National Police have arrested a 38-year-old man and a 26-year-old woman in Elche (Alicante) on suspicion of committing a serious injury crime after discovering evidence that their daughter, a minor under the age of three, had undergone genital surgery that resulted in irreversible injuries.

The matter was brought to the attention of the National Police in Elche after a request from the Court of First Instance and the Juvenile Prosecutor’s Office, as well as a report written by professionals at the city’s health centre.

According to the report, during a normal medical check of the three-year-old girl, scarring physical indicators were discovered that may match to a traditional technique known as female genital mutilation, which is still practised in several African countries.

The educational and healthcare personnel conducted the evaluation as part of routine medical procedures, without any prior suspicions. The minor arrived in Spain in May 2024 and was legally residing with her parents.

The National Police investigation revealed that during the minor’s care and interviews with the parents, the father admitted that the intervention on the child occurred within the framework of a cultural belief but did not provide specific details about the time or location of the intervention.

However, every piece of evidence gathered by police officials suggested that the act occurred outside of Spain. The inquiry also helped investigators identify the offenders, allowing them to locate and arrest the couple in Elche. The two arrested are being probed for a crime involving serious bodily harm. Both appeared before the Elche Duty Investigative Court.

The National Police warn everyone that any act that violates the physical or moral integrity of minors is a serious breach of Spanish law, regardless of the culprits’ cultural or personal backgrounds.

Child protection is ensured by national legislation and international treaties that Spain has signed. Respect for cultural and religious traditions must always be tempered by adherence to Human Rights, as enshrined in the Universal Declaration of 1948.

States have a commitment to protect the well-being, safety, and dignity of all minors, without exception.

The Guardia Civil of the Region of Murcia investigated a traffic accident on the N-301 highway in Murcia. This inquiry led to the identification, location, and arrest of a driver accused of committing two road safety violations: one for highly reckless driving and leaving the scene of an accident, and one for serious bodily harm caused by negligence.

The incident occurred early on March 28th on the N-301 highway, which runs through Murcia, at the Isla Grossa junction. A vehicle exiting the A-30 motorway, about which no more information was available, entered the roundabout and collided with a moped in the centre lane. The crash left the moped driver gravely injured and prone in the middle of the road.

Shortly after, an ambulance arrived to treat the injured person, and the driver who caused the accident quickly left the scene without providing any information or waiting for a Guardia Civil traffic patrol to arrive to prepare the corresponding report and carry out other relevant procedures, such as alcohol and drug testing.

With no information available, and because the incident occurred so quickly, the injured individual was unable to see who had crashed with them, the Traffic Sector launched its Murcia Road Safety Investigation Unit (UNIS) to investigate and clarify the situation.

UNIS Guardia Civil officers conducted a comprehensive investigation, which involved locating witnesses to the incident, conducting multiple vehicle and passenger checks at the scene and within the same timeframe, and reviewing security cameras in the surrounding area. After thoroughly analysing all of the evidence, they were able to limit down the number of suspects involved for the traffic collision.

As a result of the investigation, the Guardia Civil were able to fully identify the fleeing vehicle and determine that its driver had already been driving recklessly prior to causing the road accident, abruptly overtaking vehicles at the motorway junction with this roundabout and joining it suddenly and without regard for those already driving on it, thus surprising the driver of the moped.

After conducting all of the investigations and identifying the responsible driver, who was driving one of the same make and model vehicles in a company’s fleet, the Guardia Civil identified and arrested the suspect as the suspected perpetrator of three crimes. Two traffic offences for manifestly reckless driving and fleeing the scene of an accident, as well as one for causing serious bodily damage via negligence.

The offence of abandoning the scene of an accident was added to the Criminal Code in March 2019 as a complement to the criminal of failing to provide aid. This was done to ensure that, even if the person injured in a traffic accident was cared for by other drivers or witnesses, the person guilty for the incident would not go unpunished, and their information would be available if the court authorities required it.