Albufeira council is repeating its ‘Arribas! Cooperate - Avoid an Accident!’ campaign across the municipality’s beaches during July and August.
The goal is to alert bathers to the dangers of rockfalls from cliffs to warn them to take preventative measures.
From July 4 to August 31, the council, through the Municipal Civil Protection Service, will visit its beaches to distribute information leaflets in Portuguese and English to bather that alert them to the main risks near the cliffs and how to avoid them.
The campaign advises holidaymakers to adopt measures such as avoiding sitting under unstable cliffs, respecting danger signs on the beaches and not sheltering from the sun or the wind by moving to danger areas near the cliffs.
"The instability of the coastal cliffs has been a much talked about subject in recent years due mainly to the collapse of sections of cliff on beaches. We want to guarantee the safety of all citizens and, therefore, we want to raise awareness through this information campaign," says Ana Vidigal, a councillor with responsibility for Civil Protection matters.
The initiative has the full endorsement of the Maritime Authority, the Maritime Police, Association of Sailing Swimmers of Albufeira and Aquaform.
In August last year, a 1,000 tonne section of cliff collapsed onto Maria Luísa beach, one of Albufeira’s most popular.
Maria Luísa beach was the scene of an August 2009 tragedy in which five people were crushed to death (see picture above). Eight people were rescued from beneath the rubble, including a 38-year old woman who later died in hospital.
The authorities said at the time that signs had been posted along the cliff warning of the possible danger of rockfalls.
Desidério Silva, Albufeirta’s mayor back then, said he was satisfied that enough warning signs had been placed along that stretch of beach to warn tourists of the danger.
