Almenara steps up security for total solar eclipse, closes castle
Almenara has stepped up security for Wednesday's total solar eclipse with drone surveillance, extra patrols and the closure of its castle over wildfire risk, in a town bordering Camp de Morvedre and also visible from Sagunto.
The security plan comes under the level-3 wildfire risk alert that the regional government (Generalitat Valenciana) keeps active across the district, a situation that forces the closure to the public, from tomorrow, of both Almenara Castle and the rest of the town's hillside areas. Before finalising the operation, Local Police chief Javier Navarro took part this week in a remote meeting with the regional emergencies commissioner (conseller de Emergencias) and officers from neighbouring towns, closing off several weeks of coordination among different police forces. Locally, mayor Estíbaliz Pérez had already briefed the Interior councillor, Débora Marín, and the police chief himself on the plan's outline, at an earlier meeting held at the town hall.
Drone surveillance is focused on the castle grounds and the surrounding woodland, with live footage sent to regional services to help coordinate the response to any incident. The protected fortress — of Muslim origin, built in the 10th century over earlier Roman foundations — has been listed as a Site of Cultural Interest (BIC) since 1985, a status that reinforces the case for keeping it free of any risk during the day of highest expected visitor numbers.
With the Sun sitting just 4 degrees above the horizon in Almenara, tomorrow's astronomical event is no ordinary one: it will be the first total solar eclipse visible in its totality from mainland Spain since 30 June 1973, more than five decades ago. The town council recommends looking for spots with a clear view to the west-northwest, pointing to the Ecoparque car park — in the Trascastell industrial estate — and La Marjal wetland as the best options, while Casablanca beach offers intermediate conditions and the town centre is less suitable due to the low solar height.
Authorities remind residents that looking directly at the Sun always requires certified glasses meeting the ISO 12312-2 standard, free of scratches or damage, viewed in short intervals of under a minute with pauses in between. Ruled out entirely are homemade filters, ordinary sunglasses, X-ray film, smoked glass, or any optical instrument — binoculars, telescopes, cameras — without a specific solar filter. Only during totality, when the Moon fully covers the Sun's disc, can the protective glasses be briefly removed, and they must go back on the moment any part of the Sun reappears.
The town hall is asking residents to enjoy the phenomenon safely, respecting the mountain closure and following the instructions of deployed officers. The same eye-safety precautions apply, authorities note, to anyone watching the eclipse from Sagunto or elsewhere in Camp de Morvedre, since the low solar altitude is a feature shared along the whole Valencian coast during this event. According to El Periódico de Aquí, with additional background from Wikipedia on the 12 August 2026 solar eclipse and Almenara Castle.