No ICU ambulances at night: growing concern over emergency healthcare in Orihuela Costa

In Orihuela Costa an increasingly worrying question is being raised: what happens if a serious medical emergency occurs at night?

The concern is based on concrete facts: in the coastal area of the municipality, the advanced life support emergency service (SAMU) has for a long time not operated 24 hours a day, but only approximately from 9:30 to 21:30.

This means that at night there may be no specialised emergency unit available locally.

45-minute response in a cardiac arrest case

Residents’ concerns are not theoretical — they are based on real incidents.

One widely discussed case involved a cardiac arrest where the ambulance took around 45 minutes to arrive from another city.

During that time, bystanders attempted to keep the patient alive following instructions over the phone.

Local resident Cristina Pindado described the situation as“moments of extreme tension” and called it“dangerous for people’s lives.”

Summer: when the system starts to fail

The key factor worsening the situation is seasonality.

Officially, Orihuela has a population of around 80,000–85,000 people.

However, in summer the reality changes dramatically.

With tourists and second-home owners, the actual population in the coastal area increases by 2 to 3 times.

This means a system designed for about 40,000–50,000 coastal residentsmust actually serve 100,000–120,000 people.

What happens in reality

The increase in demand is not gradual — it is sudden.

In summer there are:

• more emergency calls

• more incidents (heatstroke, beach accidents, traffic accidents)

• more elderly patients

The region attracts many older residents and visitors, increasing cases of heart attacks, strokes and other critical conditions where every minute matters.

This is when the system begins to operate at its limits.

One unit for tens of thousands of people

Another issue is the size of the coverage area.

Each emergency unit serves:

• Orihuela Costa

• surrounding areas

At the same time, the population multiplies during summer.

According to international standards, this level of workload is considered excessive.

Geography works against response time

The structure of the area also plays a role.

Orihuela Costa is not a compact city, but a spread-out network of urbanisations.

This leads to:

• longer travel times

• more complex logistics

• dependence on unit availability

In emergency medicine, this directly impacts response times.

“We feel like second-class citizens.”

Social tension is already visible.

Residents openly say:

“We pay taxes but don’t get the same level of safety.”

“In the summer there are more people, but the healthcare system stays the same.”

“We feel forgotten”

The system exists — but does not keep up

Formally, the healthcare infrastructure is present:

• Hospital Vega Baja

• health centres

• emergency services

But the real issue is:

👉 population and tourism are growing faster than the system

Conclusion

The situation in Orihuela Costa is not an isolated issue but a structural signal.

Rapid growth, seasonal pressures and limited resources create a situation where response times can become critical.

The key question today is:

will the healthcare system catch up with real demand, or will residents continue to live with a sense of risk at the most critical moment?

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