Los Gigantes Beach Landslide Tragedy - Three Days of Mourning for Victims

SHATTERED IDYLL: Los Guios beach in Los Gigantes in happier times.

SANTIAGO del Teide council declared three days of official mourning after two women were killed in a landslide on Los Gigantes beach on November 1.

by James Tweedie

The local authority announced the period of mourning following an emergency council meeting on Monday November 2, called in response to the tragic deaths of 57-year old British holidaymaker Marion O’Hara and 34-year old Canarian hotel worker Maria Vanesa Arias Romera.

Flags at Santiago del Teide town hall were flown at half mast for the period of mourning, and all official functions observed a minute’s silence in memory of the victims.

The two women were killed when 130-foot wide stretch of the cliffs above the tiny Los Guios beach collapsed from a height of about 200 feet, burying them beneath rubble up to 15 feet deep, according to a spokesman for the Guardia Civil which was conducting the investigation into the accident.

The landslide occurred about 3pm on the Sunday afternoon, when many people were reportedly on the small public beach to take advantage of the fine weather that day.

Some 150 rescue workers spent hours digging through the debris after it was initially feared that more people had been trapped.

Controversy about the accident soon arose.

The two deaths occurred less than a month after a smaller landslide on October 7 that had left part of the beach strewn with boulders.

The beach was not closed, but the vicinity of the landslide had been cordoned off with plastic tape.

British tourist Howard Williams said: “Police were aware the cliff was dangerous for days, but the only thing they put in place was a bit of builder’s tape.”

But a lifeguard at the beach said that he had warned people to stay away from the cliffs but that they had ignored him.

Santiago del Teide mayor Juan Damián Gorrín said that the council had planned work to protect the beach from landslides.

Federal government representative José Antonio Batista later revealed that the council had submitted a funding request for the project to the Dirección General de Costas (General Directorate of Coasts) but that it was turned down for lack of the necessary guarantees.

The British Foreign Office said that it was providing consular support to Ms O’Hara’s family.

Over 200 people attended the funeral of Ms Arias, who worked at a hotel in Costa Adeje, in Arona on November 3. The local corporations of Santiago del Teide and Arone were present, led by the mayors of the two municipalities Mr Gorrín and José Alberto González.

Ms Arias’ friends said: “Vanesa was a good, caring person. We still cannot believe that she is no longer with us. Without doubt, we have lost a close and irreplaceable friend.”

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