CLEANING UP THE COSTA: The recovery begins

THE General Coastal Management department has announced it will provide assistance to beachside towns in Malaga province which suffered the effects of the storms over the first weekend in December.

The department will be providing resources to help clear the beaches of debris as, although this falls under the responsibility of local councils, it has stated that it realises that the problem is an extraordinary and expensive one to solve. For ecological and aesthetic reasons, the authorities wish to have all the beaches cleared by the end of the month.

Technicians are currently studying the effects of the storms and work is expected to begin next week along the stretch between Fuengirola and Manilva, where beaches were particularly badly affected.

Meanwhile the government’s Insurance Compensation Consortium has already registered and started to deal with 1,952 claims arising from the storms, which it considers affected more than 6,000 people and caused €25 million worth of damage.

Local councils are also putting in their claims for government aid with Estepona for example evaluating damage to municipal infrastructure and equipment at around €27 million.

The Junta de Andalucia regional government has already announced its intention to put €3 million aside to repair provincial roads damaged by the bad weather.