BABYLON BEACH in Guardamar del Segura is to remain closed this summer, with a 900-metre stretch deemed too dangerous for public access.
The town council announced the decision after more houses were ruined during recent storms, with two sinkholes opening up on Avenida Ingeniero Codorniu and piles of rubble accumulating near the popular sandy strip.
A document signed by the national Beaches Council states that the area between house numbers 1-197 must remain off-limits to bathers until their security can be guaranteed.
The local councillor responsible for beaches, Ana Martinez, explained that plastic fences will be installed since metal is likely to rust, while a series of panels will inform beachgoers that access is prohibited.
Sanctions will be handed to anyone breaching the rules, although Martinez added that the situation is complicated as fences cannot be erected in the water.
Homeowners whose properties have been affected are waiting to learn of their fate, having been informed in December 2016 that they are unable to access them.
The houses were built in the 1940s and it has emerged that they have no proper foundations, while engineers have confirmed that the problem extends to a major part of the road and pavement, sections of which started to collapse during December and January’s storms.
In the wake of the destruction, the council made the decision to demolish segments between house numbers 115-123 and
161-187 since they presented an “imminent danger.”
The Beaches Council has so far refused to allow local authorities to repair the damages, with the only remaining option to install a perimeter fence.
