Royal Decree-Law 6/2024 of November 5, on urgent measures to respond to the damage caused by DANA, published this Wednesday at the BOE, leaves El Ejido out of the list of municipalities and will not be able to request this first package of national aid. So far, more than 7,309 communications have been received at El Ejido City Hall reporting damage to more than 2,000 homes, 5,000 vehicles and more than 5,000 agricultural hectares following the severe hailstorm that hit the municipality on October 28.
The damage caused by DANA in El Ejido amounts to more than 191 million euros, according to initial estimates. The mayor of Ejidense, Francisco Góngora, recalled the significant storm damage which affected homes, vehicles, municipal buildings, public spaces, roads and, above all, agricultural farms.
On the night of October 28, severe hail, rain and strong winds hit the municipality of El Ejido, causing catastrophic damage. In figures, the mayor recalled that “more than 7,000 calls were received, with damage to some 2,000 homes and more than 5,000 vehicles for an amount estimated at more than 26 million euros, to which is added almost 7 million euros for damage caused to public spaces and facilities, such as pavilions, schools, roads and containers.
But the most significant damage, as the highest municipal official pointed out, “occurred in the agricultural sector, with more than 5,000 hectares of crops affected. There are 35 hectares completely collapsed and 33% crop losses, which translates into more than 158 million euros in direct losses and damage.
Pepper crop affected by hailstorm in greenhouse in El Ejido
Certain data which places the municipality as one of the most affected in terms of economic losses of the entire Andalusian community. Despite this, Royal Decree-Law 6/2024 of November 5 on urgent measures to respond to the damage caused by DANA, published this Wednesday in the Official State Gazette (BOE), leaves El Ejido outside the list of municipalities and will not do it. to be able to request this first package of national aid. Likewise, Góngora stated that “we hope that in the coming days El Ejido will be included in the decree, as has been communicated to us by the government subdelegation and by ministerial sources.”
Serious crop damage
The Territorial Delegation of Agriculture, Fisheries, Water and Rural Development of the Junta de Andalucía in Almería, through the Regional Agrarian Offices (OCA), has confirmed serious damage to approximately 400 hectares of crops on the 5,265 hectares affected in western Almería by DANA. . According to data collected by the Autonomous Administration, the damage occurred in almost the entire Campo de Dalías with particular affection in the region of El Ejido, from the north of Santa María del Águila towards Las Norias de Daza.
Breakage of plastic cover was recorded in virtually all recorded hectares due to “large hailstones “New or fully-used plastics have been punctured.” The old plastic covers have been completely destroyed.
Of the 5,265 hectares in the entire region, mainly devoted to pepper and cucumber crops, about 44 are due to collapse of a greenhouse with structures between 20 and 30 years old. Thus, they observe that in the collapsed greenhouses, the destruction of the crop was total while in the rest, the damage derived from the impacts of the hail that passed through the plastic is of great variability.
