The Lloret de Mar Local Police station was forced to close its doors on Saturday night due to a severe lack of personnel. According to Mayor Adrià Lamelas, 38 simultaneous absences were registered over the weekend, adding to long-term sick leaves and vacations. The situation was so critical that private security had to be hired to guard the premises, and reinforcements were requested from the Mossos d’Esquadra to patrol the municipality.
This exceptional situation is part of a labor dispute between the police force and the municipal government over the renewal of the collective agreement, which has been expired since 2012. The mayor acknowledged that the situation is "worrying and causes concern," especially as the peak summer season approaches in this well-known tourist town on the Costa Brava.
The council detailed in a statement that twenty incidents occurred in a single day, preventing the night shift on Saturday from being covered. Emergency measures were implemented, including private security to ensure essential services, given the presence of weapons and ammunition at the police station. The Local Police maintains citizen services open both in person and by phone.
The City Council maintained constant contact with the Consellera d'Interior (Minister of the Interior) and the Mossos d’Esquadra, who reinforced their presence in the municipality to guarantee security. The council assures that it is working to resolve the situation "with a willingness for dialogue and negotiation," but always within the framework of current legality and technical reports.
The opposition, formed by Junts, Tots per Lloret, and ERC, has criticized the municipal government's management, accusing it of having allowed the situation to "degrade" and of being "incapable of resolving" the conflict. Councilors such as Jordi Martínez (Junts) and Albert Robert (Tots per Lloret) consider the closure of the police station unacceptable, while Albert Ferràndez (ERC) attributes it to a "lack of leadership".
The Local Police force, comprising 110 officers, has stopped working overtime for months due to a lack of progress in negotiating the agreement. The mayor states that the union's demands would violate legality, according to municipal reports. The force was reclassified in 2017 with a pay increase. A new meeting between unions and the council is scheduled for this Friday.
