Magaluf main strip shut down after drunken Brits cause havoc over weekend
Locals described the scenes as ‘shameful’
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Your support makes all the difference.Magaluf’s main tourist strip has been shut down after crowds of drunken Brits who appeared to ignore social distancing guidelines caused havoc over the weekend.
Video shared widely online shows maskless crowds dancing outside bars and nightclubs in the Punta Ballena district, an area popular with mostly young British tourists looking to party.
A young man can be heard shouting “let’s have it” as festival-like scenes erupt in the street. Two people can be seen stomping on top of a parked Mercedes car, swinging their T-shirts above their heads while crowds cheer them on.
Local media reports that one person was arrested after nearly £2,000 worth of damage was caused to the Mercedes.
The images sparked anger across Spain, while locals in Magaluf described the behaviour of drunken British tourists as “shameful”.
Speaking at a press conference on Wednesday, Balearic Islands’ tourism minister Iago Negueruela said that businesses in the area would have to close because of the behaviour.
“All commercial establishments, bars and restaurants in these streets will have to close following the publication of an official government bulletin which will be today.
“They will have to close today. We cannot tolerate the sort of images we have been seeing over the last few days and we are not going to tolerate it. Our tourist and economic activity depends on our image.”
He added: “We urge the general population and the tourists to obey rules on social distancing and the other measures put in place by the Balearic Islands government.
“If tourists are not prepared to obey these rules then we ask them not to come to our islands. We don’t want uncivil holidaymakers here. We passed an ‘anti-trash tourism’ decree at the start of the year to tell them not to come and not to misbehave.”
As of Wednesday morning, authorities in Spain had reported more than 250,000 cases of Covid-19 and recorded in excess of 28,000 deaths.
The country’s health ministry logged 666 infections on Tuesday – the second-highest daily jump since late May, according to official figures.
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