The Orihuela City Council has, this afternoon (Wednesday 13 July), closed the beaches at Cala Mosca, Cala Cerrada and Cala Bosque due to “having detected a high level of contamination of residual origin”, according to a statement made public by the council.

This closure has occurred  following “controls carried out by the General Water Directorate regarding the quality of bathing water on the relevant beaches,” where a pollution episode has been detected.

The councillor of beaches, Antonio Sánchez, said that it is a discharge of sewage, the origin of which is currently being investigated. ”

Hidraqua, the water service concessionaire in Orihuela, is currently trying to find the source of the discharge and put a solution to it. The Local Police are also on the beaches to ensure that people do not swim or enter the water. Normally, once the spill is located and it is closed, it is usually reopened withing just a few hours.”

But before that can happen the problem needs to be resolved, the source sealed up and water samples taken that show compliant values.