The Spanish government is deploying tens of thousands of soldiers, police officers and rescue workers to the Balearic Islands, as authorities brace for both a surge of eclipse tourists and a heightened risk of wildfires this week.
Spain is mobilising tens of thousands of soldiers, police officers and rescue workers ahead of Wednesday's total solar eclipse, as authorities brace for both record crowds and a heightened risk of wildfires across the Balearic Islands off its eastern coast.
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The Ministry of Defence has agreed to requests from the Balearic Government and will deploy a tactical unit at several points in the Serra de Tramuntana, on the island of Mallorca, ahead of the total eclipse due to take place this Wednesday not only on this island but across the Balearic archipelago.
The troops will thus join the 93 forest firefighters deployed on the largest island in the archipelago, as well as 23 in Menorca, 39 in Ibiza and another six in Formentera.
The regional government plans to increase aerial surveillance flights, as weather conditions heighten the risk of wildfires on the day of the eclipse. Meanwhile, Maritime Rescue has strengthened its deployment at sea with 70 professionals on the day of the phenomenon.
The Army's deployment in Mallorca will not be limited to Wednesday.
The operation is already under way and will run for five days, though government spokesperson Antoni Costa has not specified how many soldiers will reinforce the armed forces' presence on the island.
Troops will focus on tightening controls on access routes to the Tramuntana, given the high fire risk in the area over the coming days.
The Ma-10 road will be closed to general traffic between Andratx and Pollença from 3 pm to 9 pm CEST.
Only residents, property owners, workers, guests, customers with accredited parking and public transport or ride-hailing vehicles will be allowed through. Access will also be restricted to numerous viewpoints, coves and natural areas across several municipalities, according to Diario de Mallorca.
The eclipse is expected to draw large crowds to the region.
The Balearic Association of Nautical Companies reports that practically all boats have already been hired to watch the event, according to SER Mallorca. Palma's EMT will introduce a special bus service to S'Arenal, a peri-urban town south of the capital with a much broader stretch of coastline, while the city beach will close from midday up to its boundary with Llucmajor.
Across Spain, the government has activated a large-scale security operation that will mobilise 33,600 officers from the National Police and the Civil Guard, under a single command overseeing land, sea and air surveillance.
The Directorate-General for Traffic is providing a further 2,500 personnel in permanent coordination with the operation.
The total number of journeys is expected to exceed one million, with the central government restricting access to 123 high-risk areas for environmental reasons or because of evacuation difficulties.
