Barcelona’s Sant Joan celebrations drew 90,000 people to the city’s five-kilometre coastline as the annual festival unfolded amid a severe heatwave and heightened wildfire risk. Despite the conditions, emergency services reported a relatively calm night, with no major fires or serious injuries. The large beach crowds required a large police and emergency response to maintain order and public safety.
At 6:30 a.m., Guardia Urbana, Mossos d'Esquadra and the Port Police began clearing the beaches so cleaning crews could prepare the sand for the day ahead. Attendance was slightly below the previous year’s reported record of 92,000, but the operation remained extensive. Mayor Jaume Collboni, accompanied by Security Deputy Albert Batlle and Chief Inspector Pedro Velázquez, oversaw the beach operations. Batlle described the night as “intense but relatively calm,” reflecting the challenge of managing crowds during a major public celebration.
Medical teams attended to 32 people on the beaches, and 17 were transferred to hospital. Police detained 11 people, including one person involved in a violent incident at Mar Bella beach, where a machete was used in an assault. The victim received medical attention and was not in a life-threatening condition. Cleaning services removed 70 tonnes of rubbish, while city firefighters responded to 120 fires, half involving rubbish containers.
Celebrations also spread to city squares and streets. Civil Protection authorities issued warnings as 110 municipalities in Catalonia faced very high wildfire risk and more than 500 towns were on elevated alert. Bonfires and fireworks were suspended in the most vulnerable areas. By midnight, the Generalitat’s fire service had received more than 600 calls, mainly concerning minor vegetation fires, container blazes, traffic accidents and rescues. Barcelonès, Vallès Occidental and Maresme recorded the highest numbers of incidents.
The festival also marked the debut of new video-surveillance cameras along the Barceloneta seafront. Twelve cameras, directed at the promenade rather than the sand or bathers, were activated to improve security. By 9 a.m. on Wednesday, Catalonia’s 112 emergency hotline had received 10,260 calls related to the festivities, corresponding to 5,207 incidents. Barcelona accounted for 2,158 calls and L’Hospitalet de Llobregat for 791. The province of Barcelona generated 74.4% of the calls, with Tarragona, Lleida and Girona accounting for the remainder.
The Generalitat’s wildfire response structure includes INFOCAT, Catalonia’s forest-fire emergency plan, and the Alfa scale, which classifies fire danger. In a later assessment of the 2026 fire season, the Generalitat recorded 450 fires and 4,833 hectares burned between June and September. Alfa level 4, the scale’s highest risk level, was activated for 36 days, compared with seven days in 2025 and five in 2024, information from reporting by L’Indépendant. Those seasonal figures put the Sant Joan fire precautions in the context of a year of elevated wildfire danger.
Large public events such as Sant Joan require coordination among multiple agencies, particularly when heat and fire danger increase demands on emergency services. Major sporting events can also test response capacity, as seen in international tournaments such as the recent Group E match between Ecuador and Curazao, which drew impressive attention and required strong security measures, as detailed in this report on crowd management during high-profile matches.
Sant Joan remains one of Catalonia’s most impressive public celebrations, blending tradition with modern safety measures. This year, authorities managed the crowds and responded to fires and other incidents amid extreme weather and elevated fire risk. Surveillance cameras and emergency teams form part of Barcelona’s effort to balance the festival’s appeal with public safety.
