A couple of weekends ago, a fisherman's boat in Puerto Pollensa was deliberately released. It smacked into the yacht club pier and was damaged. For the fishermen, a line had been crossed. This vandalism was denounced to the Guardia Civil. It was the latest act in what has been a growing security problem posed by the so-called "botellón" - young people gathering to drink.
The fishermen have complained of theft and have expressed concerns that a cigarette end carelessly discarded could cause a fire. The matter was brought to the attention of the Balearic government's ports authority, Ports de les Illes Balears (Ports IB). A request was made for greater surveillance and the installation of security cameras trained on the fishermen's boats.
The authority has responded by announcing that it is drafting ordinance to specifically address the botellón. Puerto Pollensa has not been alone in suffering the problem: Cala Ratjada, Porto Cristo, Puerto Andratx have been other ports. For Puerto Pollensa, Ports IB will be putting in a camera to watch the fishermen's boats and two more for the pier in the area of the Stay restaurant, which has also been a magnet for the botellón.