The final day of the 450th anniversary commemorations held in La Herradura ended with a solemn act in homage to the 5,000 victims of this maritime disaster.

Despite the rain, hundreds of villages and visitors turned up for the ceremony, which was held next to the shipwreck-victim monument, where a stage had been erected for the occasion

The First Councillor for La Herradura, Juan José Ruiz Joya, recounted how 25 of the 28 galleys belonging to the fleet under Juan de Mendoza were driven against the rocks on the Punta de la Mona side of La Herradura Bay.

After the reading, the Mayor of Almuñécar, Trinidad Herrera and Captain Tomás García of the Guardia Civil raised the Spanish flat in memory of the victims as the national anthem was played by the municipal band.

This was followed by the placing of a wreath by a lieutenant and a sergeant of the Guardia Civil, which had been donated by the Asociación Amigos de La Herradura.

There was also a 25-fun salute; one for each galley lost before 50 hot-air-balloon lanterns were lit and launched into the night’s sky.

The Town Hall and the village in general is to be congratulated for arranging and participating in a whole series of events to mark this anniversary.

(News: Herradura, Costa Tropical, Granada, Andalucia)