Illegal New Year's rave in La Sénia with nearly 1,000 attendees continues

Nearly 1,000 people and hundreds of vehicles were gathered at an abandoned warehouse in La Sénia, Montsià, on Friday morning for an illegal rave that began on New Year's Eve.

Local police and the Mossos d'Esquadra set up checkpoints to control entry and exit to the Mataltes industrial estate in La Sénia, a town in southern Catalonia near the border with Valencia.

Some vehicles left gradually on Friday, with officers conducting alcohol and drug tests on departing drivers.

La Sénia’s mayor, Victòria Almuni, said she hoped the rave would not continue for many days and that no disturbances would occur.

Owners of nearby warehouses who visited the site reported leaving "relieved" by the "civic behavior" of the participants.

The remote location was "well chosen by the organizers," Almuni told the Catalan News Agency (ACN), "because it's away from the town, but also before reaching the town."

"If all the cars and camper vans coming through here had gone through the town, at some point the police, or a neighbour, or ourselves, would have noticed that something unusual was happening," she added.

The mayor also said that the authorities "feel responsible for responding to people and reassuring them," even if citizens sometimes don't understand "why we can't act more directly and effectively to kick everyone out."

She added that the Mossos "carefully calculate what to do, the consequences, the side effects of each action."