Government Steps Up to Warn Tourists About Weather Alerts
Adverse‑weather incidents are claiming many lives among visitors to the Canary Islands.
The ministries of Territorial Policy, Territorial Cohesion and Water, and of Tourism and Employment are examining new ways to communicate weather‑related risk alerts to tourists. This was announced this morning by the head of Emergencies, Manuel Miranda, during a parliamentary session in which he stressed the need to increase information for visitors and, as far as possible, prevent incidents like the one that occurred on the afternoon of Sunday 7 December. That day a sudden sea surge caused the drowning of four people—three on the spot and a fourth later in hospital—in a natural pool in the municipality of Santiago del Teide, Tenerife.
Last Friday, Miranda and the tourism department head, Jéssica de León, led a technical meeting attended by officials from both areas.
“It is an issue that worries this Government,” the councilor said, “because we have already recorded 60 deaths this year.”
Miranda explained that, during this term, changes have already been implemented, such as the communication of pre‑alerts, which previously were sent only to emergency services.
“In this way we deepen the culture of self‑protection and individual responsibility, which are key in these episodes.”
The goal of both executive branches is to transmit alerts and pre‑alerts directly to the 270,000 tourists who visit the islands each week and to coordinate that information with the tourism sector.
“We must establish stable communication channels,” Miranda added, “with the participation of the sector, which we know is fully committed to this objective.”
Tourism and Employment Councilor’s Perspective
Jéssica de León highlighted her department’s contribution to raising awareness and providing information to both visitors and residents, assuming a clearly preventive role that has been continuously developed for almost three years.
She noted that the portal holaislascanarias.com offers informational material in 15 languages and recommendations for common risk situations such as strong marine currents, fishing in rocky areas, and child safety.
“All this work has been carried out with the highest technical rigor, with direct advice from drowning‑prevention experts, allowing us to craft reliable, coherent messages based on specialized criteria.”
De León also stressed the importance of fostering collaboration among all involved agents, without ever replacing the competent authority on critical matters such as coastal safety.
Implementation Phases
First Phase – After establishing the working group, the two ministries will:
- Create shared spaces for exchanging the information each holds.
- Simplify the wording of alerts.
- Build an updated distribution list agreed upon with tourism operators.
Second Phase – The working group will:
- Design protocols that ensure alerts reach visitors clearly and in their own languages.
- Explore how to integrate new information‑technology tools into risk‑communication channels.
Miranda also pointed out that the local population must continue to receive informative campaigns through conventional media and emphasized the need to deepen youth education—from early childhood—about how the sea works, tides, and related safety aspects.
Finally, the councilor recalled that, during the preliminary debate on the future Canary Islands Civil Protection System Law, professionals are already discussing:
- How to assess risks in tourist areas.
- Development of specific communication and alert protocols for those zones.
- Integration of self‑protection plans into the tourism environment.
These steps aim to safeguard both tourists and residents against the growing threat of adverse weather phenomena.