The Valencia Regional Emergency Coordination Centre coordinated a total of 63 searches and rescues of hikers during the Easter period, between 9 and 25 April. Of the total, 26 air rescues have been carried out and 37 only by land and 5 people have died. Compared to 2021, during the same holiday period, there have been four more deaths and 21 more rescues by air.
The Easter period has been characterised as being the first festive period without restrictions due to the coronavirus and, therefore, “a very high influx of visitors has been registered both in the coastal areas and in the mountain areas and natural parks of the Valencian Community”, explained by the regional secretary for Security and Emergencies, José María Ángel.
He has also called on citizens to “take the appropriate security measures when hiking or climbing in the mountains” and added that “as well as in other activities such as driving, different security habits are automated, certain routines should also be included in this type of excursion or outing to nature”.
Ángel has indicated that “it is vitally important that citizens have internalised the three Ps: planning, precaution and prudence when they make their escapades into nature, since not all people have the same physical conditions, and we must respect our own limits to the time to plan this leisure time”.
In this sense, the regional secretary has asked the public to “take extreme precautions” when enjoying nature given the increase in rescues and searches that have occurred in recent weeks in the places of the Valencian Community.
Of the 63 searches and rescues carried out in these weeks, 39 have occurred in Alicante, 19 in Valencia and 5 in Castellón. Fatalities have been recorded in three of them, in Bolulla, Navarrés and Calp.
Rescues and searches do not only take place in mountain areas, they are also carried out in inland waters of the Valencian Community. In this period, 4 rescues of this type have taken place, 2 in Valencia and 2 in Alicante, including those in Bolulla and Navarrés.
In these interventions, the Generalitat’s medicalised helicopter frequently participates in the health care of people who get lost or injured while hiking or doing sports in nature. The lack of adequate equipment or the ignorance of the terrain are usually the main trigger of the incidents.
The 112 Comunitat Valenciana manages more than 41 thousand incidents
Between 9 and 25 April, the “1·1·2 Comunitat Valenciana” Emergency telephone number received a total of 136,964 calls, which resulted in the management of 41,570 incidents. 64% (26,430) are related to health issues, followed by those related to safety, 14% (5,979), accidents, almost 4% (1,492) and rescues 1% (404).
By province, it has been in Valencia where the most incidents have occurred, 20,573, followed by Alicante with 15,713 and Castellón with 4,837.
In addition to answering the co-official languages, the “1·1·2 Comunitat Valenciana” telephone number also answers calls in other European languages. In this sense, the total number of incidents attended by calls from residents or tourists who do not use either Spanish or Valencian rose to 871, with English, with 639, being the most used language when calling the Emergency telephone number, followed by French, with 97 and German with 73 incidents managed in this language.
