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Daily Mirror
a day ago
- Health
- Daily Mirror
Chaos on popular Canary Island beach as tourists banned from swimming in the sea
The water off the shore of Playa Dorada in the resort town of Playa Blanca was judged to be too contaminated for people to swim, with officials forbidding people from entering the water A beach in Lanzarote has been closed to swimmers over fears they could fall ill. Official carried out tests on the water quality off the shore of Playa Dorada in the resort town of Playa Blanca. They discovered that the water had microbiological contamination, leading the public health body to make a health alert and shut the beach on Tuesday. Water samples taken on Monday showed signs of pollution, prompting Yaiza Town Council to impose a temporary ban on bathing, Canarian Weekly reported. Further investigations will now be carried out in a bid to work out the cause of the contamination. La Voz reported that the contaminant was Escherichia coli, also known as E. coli, and streptococcus bacteria. E. coli bacteria are most commonly present in the intestines of animals and humans, while streptococcus can cause various infections in humans. Yaiza recommends residents and tourists enjoy other beaches, such as those located in the Los Ajaches Natural Monument, known as Papagayo Beach; Playa Flamingo; or even the small beach in Playa Blanca. The beach will only reopen once tests confirm the water is safe for swimming. Playa Dorada is far from the only beach in Spain that has had issues with water contamination in recent weeks. Last month, sunseekers were left horrified when dozens of dead rats ended up floating in the sea. Following a heavy downpour, the bloated rodents began to bob off a beach in Spain's Costa Blanca. The overburdened local sewage system has been blamed for the disgusting scenes facing beachgoers near Alicante's Coco and Urbanova beaches. Rats were pictured lying dead on the sand at Urbanova beach, three miles south of Alicante City Centre. Others were filmed floating lifeless in the water. Dead rats were also spotted near the sailing school at Alicante's Real Club de Regatas. The ugly scenes provoked the anger of an opposition councillor for the popular holiday resort, who worries that mixing tourists and dead rats is not a good idea. Trini Amoros, deputy spokesperson for Alicante City Council's socialist group, said: 'Alicante cannot allow rats floating off our beaches.' Council officials quickly raised a yellow flag as a warning to sunbathers as the large brown blotch spread across the water. The bizarre incident occurred around midday at a stretch of beach in Benalmadena, near two hotels - the Globales Los Patos Park Hotel and Hotel Spa Benalmadena Palace. Council chiefs said that the yellow warning flags had been raised when the sea started turning brown, attributing the discolouration to a broken water pipe and assuring the public that there was no danger to public health.
Hindustan Times
26-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Hindustan Times
Who is Julión Álvarez? Mexican singer says US concert postponed after his, bandmates' work visas were revoked
Mexican singer Julión Álvarez has announced that he has postponed his Saturday, May 24, concert at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, because his work visa was revoked. Álvarez, show promoter CMN and management company Copar Music claimed that the concert had to be canceled 'due to unforeseen circumstances,' NBC News reported. They added that Álvarez was 'unable to enter the United States in time for the event.' Álvarez, 42, spoke about the postponement in an Instagram post. He said in a video that on May 23, they were formally informed that his and his bandmates' work visas were canceled ahead of their concert on May 24. About 50,000 tickets had been sold for the show, the artist said. Promoters and Álvarez's team said they are working hard and trying their best to reschedule the performance. All the tickets that were previously bought will be eligible for the new date, and for those who cannot attend the show on the new date, details will be provided for requesting a refund. Álvarez, born and raised in La Concordia, Chiapas, México, joined the Mexican band, 'Banda MS,' until 2006. He later went on to form his own band, named 'Julion Alvarez y Su Norteno Banda.' Miguel Angel Fox, producer of the Mexican talent show, La Voz, selected Álvarez to participate as coach in its fourth edition back in 2014. He became the winning coach with his pupil, Guido Rochin. Álvarez's album, El Aferrado, was nominated at the 16th Annual Latin Grammy Awards for Best Banda Album, and his song, El Amor De Su Vida, was nominated for Best Regional Song. It was announced in May 2016 that Álvarez would embark on a 22-Foot Arena Tour in the United States, which was set to be the first for a regional Mexican act. However, he has had run-ins with the US government in the past due to accusations of money laundering in 2017 in connection with Mexican drug kingpin Raul Flores Hernandez. Álvarez, who was widely known as 'The King of the Box Office,' was blacklisted by the Department of the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control in 2017, but removed in May 2022. Had Saturday's performance not been postponed, it would have been Álvarez's fourth US show on the 4218 Tour USA 2025. He had three shows at SoFi Stadium in California in April.
Yahoo
04-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
40 years of firefighting: Valley Hispanic Bomberos builds legacies of Latino firefighters
For the past 40 years, the Valley Hispanic Bomberos has dedicated its efforts to provide mentorship and outreach to young adults in underserved communities throughout metro Phoenix, paving the way for more Latinos to join firefighting departments. Born out of the need to see more firefighters reflect the communities they serve, the organization has seen countless members go through its mentorship program and succeed in joining a Valley company. "And it just doesn't stop when you come on the job either. Our organization continues. You are a bombero for life," Greg Morales, president of the organization, told La Voz/The Arizona Republic. With notable members such as current Phoenix Fire Chief Mike Duran III, Morales said Bomberos members are represented in all ranks of Valley fire departments. Morales grew up across the street from Phoenix Fire Department Station 24, off 43rd and West Virginia Avenue in Maryvale, a west Phoenix community with a majority Latino population. He witnessed his local firefighters respond to calls countless times, but he never considered he could one day join them as he navigated school in the Isaac Elementary and Phoenix Union High School districts. Morales got a job with the City of Phoenix driving a garbage truck in 1996, where he worked for five years before considering a different career path. In 2001, a few friends came to him and said, "hey, the fire department is hiring. Let's go take this test." And that was that. This was when Morales said he was introduced to Bomberos. "I never even realized it until I was introduced, until I had that person that looked like me and talked like me and said, 'hey, you can do this job.' And then the light bulb went off, and I was like, 'man, I can do this,'" Morales said. Get Spanish-language news in your inbox. Subscribe to our newsletter here. He joined Bomberos in preparation for becoming a firefighter and fell in love with it. By 2006, he was working at a fire department. Morales said the organization provides mentorship for firefighters from when they first undergo the process to become a firefighter, which takes about five years, to when they're looking to move up within a company or department. "If you are a firefighter and you have aspirations to be an engineer, to drive the truck, we give classes and study material to help you get ready for that process, to become a captain, all the way up to becoming a chief," Morales said. The organization was officially founded in 1986. One of the founders of the organization was Bobby Ruiz, former chief of the Peoria Fire-Medical Department, with approximately 200 employees serving some 190,000 residents northwest of Phoenix, since 2012. Ruiz retired from the department in 2021 after being placed on leave due to an investigation that found he had allowed an employee to spend 12 weeks studying for a test from home, while still on payroll, instead of performing his usual duties. When Ruiz was a student at Arizona State University, he decided to apply to become a firefighter along with his friend Carlos Costa, who was visiting home one summer from Yale University. By 1980, when Ruiz was a fire captain in Phoenix, he began to hear conversations about few Latinos, people of color and women in fire departments. According to Ruiz, public information officers at departments would say this was due to the lack of qualified applicants. In response, Ruiz said he told them, "You don't know where to look. Let us find you some qualified applicants." In 1984, as talks of organizing were sparking, Ruiz said then Phoenix City Councilperson Mary Rose Wilcox went to former Phoenix Fire Chief Alan Brunacini and former Phoenix Assistant Fire Chief Chuck Kime about an arson issue that was plaguing the communities from the I-17 to 35th Avenue and from Buckeye Road to Van Buren Street. In three months, Ruiz, who was in charge of arson investigations at the time, said the area saw close to 100 fires started at vacant homes, sheds and other similar structures. "It was scaring the heck out of the neighbors," he said. Ruiz said he proposed a three-pronged approach to engage the communities where the fires were being started —a majority Latino area. This involved having Latino firefighters hang posters, pass out flyers and talk to parents and children of those neighborhoods. The second and third parts, according to Ruiz, involved Latino firefighters becoming embedded in neighborhood schools and centers, further building relationships. The approach involved the entire community, but focused heavily on educating kids, teenagers and gang members on the dangers of playing with fire. "And so we convinced them (the gang members), 'hey, are you going to be our friend? Then you've got to cut the (expletive) out. Go do something constructive,'" Ruiz said. "At the end of that period, we were astonished because we were expecting to make some kind of impact, but we weren't expecting to make the problem go away totally, and it did, just zero. I mean, no fires or nothing in the area," Ruiz said. With the momentum of their impact, Ruiz said he and several firefighters including Jesse Adame, Larry De La Cruz, Ray Martinez, Andy Avila and Arnie Barajas, came together to form an organization. They eventually inspired the city to copy their "Bombero Formula" and create a city employee organization that promotes, develops and inspires Latinos to get into managerial positions. That organization went on to become the Phoenix Hispanic Network. Under the guidance of his mentor, then-president Ray Martinez, Morales said he was asked to serve on the Bomberos board as community involvement director in 2007. He held this position for 15 years before being appointed vice president. He currently serves as the organization's president. Having worked in the field for 19 years, Morales gives credit to Bomberos mentors who came before him for helping build a generation of leaders. Now, it's his turn to do the same. His nephew and son have followed in his footsteps, going through the mentorship program to become firefighters and sworn members of the organization. According to the Phoenix Fire Department's 2023 Gender/Ethnicity Report, Latinos make up about 19% of the Phoenix Fire Department. Ruiz said he is very proud of the growth of the organization because "it's important to see somebody who looks like you and sounds like you." "You don't realize how much of an impact you have on someone's life," Ruiz said. Those interested in joining the organization can reach out to Valley Hispanic Bomberos via email (vhb@ or on their Facebook and Instagram for more information. The website also provides additional information on getting involved with the organization. "Our doors are open. We're looking for good people to come on. The organizations around the valley are hiring because the valley's growing, so the opportunity is there," Morales said. Have story tips on Latino culture and cuisine in the Valley? Reach La Voz reporter David Ulloa at This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: How Valley Hispanic Bomberos builds legacies of Latino firefighters
