GRANADA – A massage parlour, a bakery, several stages, clothing stores and bars with music, lots of music. More than a thousand people attended: the illegal rave party in La Peza, a village in Granada with 1200 inhabitants.
On Friday, December 30, the first cars and caravans with partygoers arrived. In the night from Saturday to Sunday, they quickly built up a small settlement – about 3 km from the village centre. Campgrounds, tents, various stages, loudspeakers and lighting: a watered-down version of the well-known Burning Man in Nevada. The population of the village immediately doubled,” said Fernando Álvarez, mayor of La Peza. “Despite the ‘chaos’, it is a reasonably well-organised event”.
Announcement of the Illegal rave through the socials
The rave party was communicated via encrypted messages and announced on socials. Rogério Dirruba, a Brazilian DJ with the stage name Killabomb, shared a photo of the event on his Instagram profile on Saturday, December 31. The rave had already been going on for 24 hours. He invited everyone to come to the rave on Sunday, January 1. “It was a bit cold last night, but the atmosphere is good now. If you are in Spain and want to come by, message me and I will send you the location,” said Killabomb.
Traffic nuisance in the village
The roads and surrounding houses in La Peza are not equipped to handle 400 vehicles in one foul swoop. That was the amount it soon had to contend with. The heavier vehicles, fully loaded with speakers and generators, certainly posed a problem. A group of Dutch youths got stuck between two houses in the village: the truck did not fit through the narrow street. However, eight hours later they were ‘liberated’ from their plight. “Apart from the major traffic nuisance, it has been relatively quiet for the time being,” says Fernando Álvarez.
There is no sign of the organisation
The authorities have not been able to identify the organisers of the party. “There is no permit for this party, no evacuation plan and no public liability insurance. We are therefore looking for the organisers so that we can hold them accountable,” the security services said.
Permanent supervision but no evacuation
Since last Friday, shortly after the first partygoers arrived, the Guardia Civil has been permanently present on the site. Together with local security services, they controlled access with about thirty agents and kept a close eye on the area. A helicopter circulated above the area and on land, the police checked for drunk driving. Narcotics were tracked down by drug dogs.
“Our visibility has had a discouraging effect on potential partygoers. A lot of the more than 4,500 ‘invitees’ have decided not to come,” the security services said. On the socials, the comments read: “I’m not going, there are too many police there”.
Yet the Guardia Civil is not yet “cleaning” the area. Such an action could turn out to be counterproductive. “For the time being, the party is peaceful, without violence or disturbances. There is a friendly atmosphere”.
As soon as it began, it ends
After 6 days, the ‘illegal party’ in La Peza has come to an end. On Thursday, January 5, the organisers who managed to build the event in a few hours, managed to break it down just as quickly.
Despite the disruption such a large party could have caused for a small village in Granada, most of the residents were happy with the rave and the friendliness of those in attendance. Some residents even participated. The rave party offered the villagers a panorama unknown until then. However, in the end, the police made sure it wouldn’t turn into an eternal rave.
Also read: Tragedy at illegal rave in Zamora province of Spain
