25 - 31 January 2018
A XARQUÍA - C OSTA T ROPICAL
YOUR PAPER, YOUR VOICE, YOUR OPINION Simon Fenwick Photography/Facebook (INSET) Jose Maria Rivas Galvez/Facebook
ISSUE NO. 1699
Police prevent suicide P OLI C E h a v e t a l k e d a man o u t o f t h r o wi n g himself from a bridge in Velez-Malaga. The 62-year-old man was taken to the Axarquia Regional Hospital after Local Police officers prevented him from jumping from the bridge near t o t h e E l I n g e n io shopping centre. Officers intercepted the suicide attempt after receiving several calls from concerned residents before finding the man calm a n d p r e p a r e d to jump, according to one publi c a t i o n . An a m b u lance transferred the man to hospital while the National Police have taken over the investigation. Last October, a 43-yearold Belgian woman also had to be talked out of throwing herself from her balcony after allegedly suffering years of abuse from her husband. The resident of Torre del Mar was found by police sitting on the railing o f h e r b a l c o n y a n d threatening to jump before a m a n a p p a r e n tly pers u a d e d h e r t o c o me inside. Police then spoke to the wo m a n wh o w a s said to be in “a state of great anxiety.” She allegedly told officers she had been physically a n d m e n t ally abused by her husband for a year. Police apparently c o n f i r m e d t h e woman had bruises on various parts of her body. Her 48-year-old Belgian husband was arrested for domestic abuse.
SAN JUAN DE CAPISTRANO: Will now have drinking water. (INSET) Nerja councillor Jose Maria Rivas welcomes the change.
Water wars A company in Nerja is installing equipment to connect homes directly to the mains supply. Aguas de Narixa is putting the technology into 4,000 homes, removing the need for metres and charging just a flat fee for water. The move will see homes removed from rival suppler network, Fuente del Baden which previously supplied around a quarter of the 18,000 homes in Nerja east. The project comes after an ongoing conflict between Nerja Council, Fuente del Baden and Aguas de Narixa over water supply. It has now been agreed between Nerja Council and Aguas de Narixa ‘they are the only ones with authorisation’ to supply ‘drinking’ water and
Fuente del Baden ‘is not authorised by the board since they only have a licence for irrigation.’ The works have been carried out mainly in the area of San Juan de Capistrano where a deposito (water tank) has been fitted with enough capacity to supply 2,000 homes with water ‘with the appropriate flow and pressure.’ Jose Maria Rivas, councillor for Infrastructure welcomed the move and explained the council now met with drinking water regulations, “something which the previous PP (Partido Popular) government did not since they ignored requirements made by the board from 2011.” He went on, “these are urbanisations
which had asked to improve the situation by connecting to Aguas de Narixa.” For its part, Fuente de Baden is planning to sue the council and Aguas de Narixa for allegedly using ‘coercions and threats’ to get consumers to switch suppliers. The company alleges, “the problems have been caused by the council which is unusual given the service this body has provided for so many years to the municipality.”
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No drought progress WORKS to connect the Chillar reservoir to Axaqruia have still not begun. The project, which is designed to supply water to La Viñuela now it has reached less than 25 per cent capacity, are still not underway despite promises by the Junta de Andalucia. The commitment formed part of several measures designed to alleviate water supply concerns and the Rubite channel which supplies water to La Viñuela has now been opened. The Chillar connection remains blocked, however, although the Junta had
committed to opening it before last summer. Last week it was revealed a water company is sending drinking water to top up La Viñuela’s dwindling supplies. Emasa plans to continue transferring 100 litres per second to the reservoirwhich is only at around a quarter of its capacity - for as long as needed. If maintained at this rate, the move will contribute an extra three cubic hectometres a year to Viñuela. Currently the La Viñuela reservoir’s water is at its lowest level since 2008, at around only 23.7 per cent capacity.
Inequality costs job A MAN has had his job offer withdrawn after it was found there were not enough women on the hiring panel. Julio Santoyo had been appointed director of clinical management of general and digestive surgery at the Carlos Haya Regional Hospital and Clinico Universitario but a judge has now reversed the decision after it was found only one woman was among the six members of the hiring panel. Following a complaint by another surgeon Cesar Pablo Ramirez Plaza, who had also applied for the role, a judge decided the panel was not balanced and therefore its decision was not binding. Defence lawyers argued Dr Ramirez Plaza had not said anything until after he was told he had not been given the job, but the judge sided with the complainant.