News from the Canary Islands

Two British men detained in the Canary Islands over plane bomb hoax

The Canary Islander — Sat, 12 May 2012 08:34:31 +0000

Spanish police have arrested two British men who falsely claimed that they had a bomb on a flight from Manchester to Tenerife, in the Canary Islands.

The two men, who are in their 20s, appeared to be drunk and claimed to have a bomb just as the plane was landing at Tenerife airport.

At the request of the crew, police entered the plane and identified two passengers as the alleged authors of the fake bomb alert and immediately detained them.

The Thomas Cook flight was carrying 218 passengers and eight crew members.

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Canary Islands wins turbine bid from USA

The Canary Islander — Mon, 07 May 2012 17:55:27 +0000

Global wind company, Gamesa has said that it will build a wind turbine prototype in the Canary Islands, instead of Virginia, citing the sluggish pace of U.S. development of offshore winds power.

The Spanish company won Virginia regulatory approval in March to construct the 479-foot, 5-megawatt wind turbine prototype off the Eastern Shore. It was viewed as a significant step by the wind technology company to help develop the U.S. wind industry, especially in waters off Virginia.

While still committed to developing a U.S. market, a Gamesa spokeswoman said the slow pace of regulatory actions, uncertainty over the future of tax credits for offshore development and the lack of a federal energy policy all conspired against the prototype.

The prototype is larger than most offshore turbines and the Virginia test unit was intended to ensure it can withstand extreme open Atlantic weather conditions.

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Smart micro grid for the island of La Graciosa

The Canary Islander — Fri, 04 May 2012 18:01:33 +0000

Endesa and the Canary Islands Technological Institute (ITC) have signed a collaboration agreement to develop a smart grid in La Graciosa, in order to achieve greater energy efficiency and the highest use of the renewable energy sources on this island, which is off the coast of Lanzarote, thus making it a sustainable island.

The objective is to develop a clean energy supply solution with wind power, solar energy and electric vehicles, and to make this small island self-sufficient in terms of energy, thereby reducing the island’s dependence upon the island of Lanzarote.

A clean energy supply solution for La Graciosa will be developed by using a smart micro grid in equipment used in generation, energy storage, active and demand management, a reliable wind and solar prediction system, smart meters enabling remote management, electric car recharge systems, etc, to make the island self-sustainable in terms of energy.

This initiative will help the Canary Islands to achieve the EU’s 20-20-20 target (20% renewable energies, 20% improvement in energy efficiency and 20% reduction in greenhouse gases by 2020).

La Graciosa is the only inhabited island in the Chinijo Archipelago which also includes Alegranza, Montaña Clara, Roque del Este and Roque del Oeste, all of which form part of the largest marine reserve in Europe and is an area of outstanding natural beauty.

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British woman dies in balcony fall

The Canary Islander — Tue, 01 May 2012 15:27:02 +0000

A 27-year-old British woman has been killed in a fall from a fifth floor balcony at a holiday apartment block in the Canary Islands.

The holidaymaker, who has not been named, fell some 50 feet just after 3am on Monday at Puerto Rico, near the popular resort of Maspalomas, on the south-west coast of Gran Canaria.

She was rushed to hospital in a critical condition with multiple fractures and died shortly after arrival.

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Canary Islands’ smuggling racket destroyed

The Canary Islander — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 19:20:40 +0000

Police in Spain have arrested 22 people and broken up a ring that allegedly smuggled people from Iran to Britain via the Canary Islands.

Traffickers also used an overland route, with people hidden in the luggage holds of buses or in freight containers on trucks.

The ringleader was Iranian as were most members of the group. Others were from Colombia, Morocco, Mauritania and Bulgaria.

The ring charged Iranians 20,000 euros per person for the voyage, with a “discount” for minors and no charge for children under two, the statement said.

Spanish authorities worked with their British counterparts in this operation. Arrests began in February.

Police said it was not known how many people entered Britain though this route.

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