Fri 17 Apr – Ibiza Covid19 Update

Covid19 figures for Ibiza & Formentera on 16/04/20 were as follows (via Periodico de Ibiza)

148 cases in total
83 Active Cases
35 in hospitals being monitored
11 in hospitals in intensive care
37 under surveillance at home
56 Discharged
11 fatalities

The latest fatality was a 65 year old man with no previous health issues who was well known on the island and worked in the nautical industry.

9 days without any new cases entering into intensive care
8 days without new infections among health professionals
3 health workers are at home being controlled by UVAC
15 health workers under ‘active surveillance’
These figures are updated daily at 1pm by Balearic Health Office

Beach concession operators in San Jose have asked the council to suspend payments until the beaches reopen. Mayor Josep Marí Ribas ‘Agustinet’ says he will study its viability in the face of “the exceptional situation that not only this sector lives, but all the economic activity linked to tourism.”.

Homeless charity ‘Caritas’ has welcomed the decision by the Ibiza Island Council to build a provisional homeless shelter on waste ground at sa Joveria near Can Misses Hospital. The initiative was announced on 8 April and will cost 1.5 million euros with a capacity to temporary house up to 56 people in 7 rooms with lockers, individual wardrobes, bathrooms and laundry facilities. Caritas also stressed the importance of having a permanent facility

Caritas has also described the current situation with regards to its food banks: “If a month ago we were at 20 or 30 people a week, we are now serving 70 or 80 every day” said Gustavo González, coordinator of Ibiza and Formentera. The service is offered by the charity on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and is based on dry products (pasta and rice), preserves, oil, milk and cookies but they also distribute prepared food in the afternoon to the most vulnerable.

The Spanish Education Ministry has reached an agreement with most regional governments to grant an automatic passing grade to all students in early education, primary, secondary and the first year of pre-university studies. Teachers will decide the exact score for each child based on the first two terms and some students could still fail specific subjects and be re-tested at a later date but no student will be held back except for a very small amount but this will require approval by regional authorities.

Vicent Mari, the President of Ibiza’s Island Council wants to put a plan together to test all essential service professionals for Covid19 in the first instance and then the entire population of Ibiza to know the exact level of contagion. The campaign would not need to be carried out immediately he explained but have the aim to achieve zero contagion in the Balearics and give the image of a safe and controlled space for visitors who can travel to the islands when ports and airports are reopened.

Air Europa will continue to offer the inter-island flights of Palma-Mahón and Palma-Ibiza, until the end of the state of alarm including any possible extensions.

Guardia Civil at Ibiza airport have made an official complaint against Iberia for not respecting the safety distance between passengers after a flight arrived on Wednesday 15 April from Madrid that had an occupancy of 70%. 128 were onboard the especially busy flight which had a capacity for 180 passengers, many were returning construction workers.

On the same flight from Madrid, Guardia Civil agents denied entry to 2 women and a man who, on arrival, could not provide any documents to prove they were residents or over for work. They were immediately returned to the mainland. The Madrid to Ibiza flight was originally planned for 3 times a week but that has now been reduced to once. The next connection with the capital is on Friday 24 April.

Work on the new Santa Eulalia highway, the Ses Païses roundabout and the resurfacing of the E-10 will remain on hold despite the resumption of activity in the construction sector. The Ibiza Island Council says that the work will be suspended for as long as it’s not possible to guarantee the required security measures for workers and until a sufficient supply of materials can be guaranteed.

Ibiza Pride that was due to take place on 10-13 June has been pushed back until the end of September, exact dates will be confirmed shortly. “When we have overcome this situation, we will return to the streets to fill Ibiza with colour” said festival director Antonio Balibrea.

Francina Armengol and Ángel Víctor Torres, the respective Presidents of the Balearic and Canary Island parliaments, have agreed to jointly ask the central government to extend the temporary employment regulation (ERTE) beyond the state of alarm to protect jobs and help the many companies that are now facing extreme complications on both sets of islands. Both Presidents also agreed to ask for specific de-confinement measures for their territories, mainly in terms of ports and airports, so that these are the last infrastructures to fully reopen. They also demanded that sanitary controls for passengers are strengthened after reopening.

Santa Eulalia Police filed 7 complaints yesterday for different types of violation of the confinement orders. Last Sunday 12 more complaints were reported against residents, some being spotted by using a drone.

Since the Ibiza lockdown started the entry of waste in the Ca na Putxa landfill has decreased by 28.4% compared to the same period last year. In the second half of March the decrease was 21.7%, while in the first five days of April the figure reached 47%.

Spanish Authorities have specifically warned about fake news so local government websites and credible press/social media pages are the best places to gather important information, please pass on wherever possible.

The situation is evolving every day however the message is very clear – please stay at home and keep a cool and calm head. By following these guidelines, together, we will beat this disease and get on with the rest of our lives.

Best Regards – Stay Safe and Stay Home

With special thanks to Lesley Donald, Tricia Templeton and Julian Cobby

VERY IMPORTANT: INFORMATION TAKEN FROM CREDIBLE PRESS AND GOVERNMENT SOURCES HOWEVER THE SITUATION IS FLUID. THIS UPDATE IS WRITTEN FOR INFORMATION PURPOSES ONLY AND I TAKE NO RESPONSIBILITY FOR ANY ERRORS GIVEN IN GOOD FAITH