Spanish official apologises for spraying beach with bleach.
Spanish authorities have issued an apology after officials sprayed bleach on a beach in an attempt to protect children from coronavirus.
The picturesque fishing village of Zahara de los Atunes sent tractors equipped with sprayers last week the day before children were allowed to play outdoors for the first time in six weeks.
According to reports, officials sprayed 1.2 square miles of beach with the harmful solution, which environmentalists in the area say caused “brutal damage” to the local ecosystem.
“It killed everything on the ground, nothing is seen, not even insects,” María Dolores Iglesias, who heads a local environmental volunteer group said.
“It’s totally absurd. The beach is a living ecosystem. And when you spray it down with bleach, you’re killing everything you come across.”
Apologising to the community, local official Agustín Conejo admitted it was “a wrong move”.
“I admit that it was a mistake, it was done with the best intention,” he said.
The incident also drew attention from Greenpeace Spain, who compared the incident with the recent controversy over Donald Trump suggesting to ingest bleach to treat COVID-19 at a White House press briefing.
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