The Es Fogueró Palace. | Archive

TW
3

Last Saturday an 18-year-old man was rushed to Son Espases in a critical condition after falling from the roof of the Es Fogueró Palace in Alcudia. No explanation was given as to why he had been on the roof. Messing around maybe.

There's little reason why, apart from curiosity, anyone would venture into the long-abandoned nightclub. It has had its share of the homeless over the years, notoriety having been assured by the case of 61-year-old Agustín González. On the night of June 17, 2010, there was a call to the 112 emergency line. Agustín, aka 'El Gallego' (The Galician), had fallen down steps.

The condition of Es Fogueró meant that an accidental fall was perfectly plausible. Railings were missing from sections of the steps. There was certainly no electrical light. That had long been cut off. Squatters had to use candles and lighters. Agustín was found in a pool of blood. He died shortly afterwards.

Guardia Civil investigators began to realise that certain things didn't add up. The call to emergencies had come from a brother and sister, Hugo Wilson, 51, and Ladia Casquete, 54. Ecuadorian, they were arrested after it had been established that Agustín had been hit on the head with a blunt instrument, a hammer. Internal bleeding as a result of the blow was the cause of death. They were remanded in custody, a third person, a 46-year-old Colombian, Iván Richard, having been released on charges; he had attempted to cover up for them.

Ultimately, Hugo and Ladia were released. It was not possible to prove that there had been a murder in Es Fogueró. This was despite their having confessed to the Guardia some three months after the events of June 17.

The site has been fenced off and there are warning signs prohibiting entrance. Nevertheless, there can still be access. There is great danger, as was emphasised by what happened last weekend. And so questions are once more being asked about Es Fogueró. Why has nothing been done? It is 32 years since it closed.

What was this place? An indication is provided by a hot summer night in 1989, the year it opened. On August 6, Julio Iglesias was in concert. It's reckoned that this cost 35 million pesetas, equivalent to 210,000 euros at the rate when the euro was introduced (and it didn't include what Iglesias was paid). The price of a ticket, including dinner, was 20,000 pesetas per person (120 euros).

Es Fogueró was to be a Las Vegas-type venue, one of the grandest show places in the whole of Europe. It could accommodate 2,000 people and was the brainchild of Pepe Casas, a nightlife entrepreneur. Also involved were Tomás Cano of Air Europa and Agustin Pinillos of Mundicolor, a tour operator.

When it opened in 1989, one observer said it was like the mother ship of an arms race in Mallorca to stage great events that were replete with strobe lights and speakers the size of trucks. There's no doubt that Es Fogueró enjoyed its golden period, but the period was only brief. The reasons cited for its demise are several, one of them having had to do with that arms race. In the Alcudia area there was an increasing number of alternative nightlife options.

Within two years the dream was turning into a nightmare. Es Fogueró may have been in one of Mallorca's main resort areas, but the Alcudia location was a principal reason why it failed. The railway to Sa Pobla wasn't operating at that time. Rather more importantly, the motorway finished in Inca. It was hugely costly to run, and the cost burden was to prove too great. There wasn't the revenue to make it a going concern.

Thirty-two years on and Es Fogueró is in effect a ruin. Apart from the occasional emergency, all it provides is curiosity value. But it is also a rotting eyesore, with no commitment from any source as to its future. It's not even as if, unlike the old Alcanada power station for example, there is any suggestion that it has heritage value. How many more years will it just sit there? Unloved and unwanted.