Aragón presents itself as the autonomous community most prepared to face the eclipse of next August 12, a phenomenon "unprecedented" and fraught with "uncertainty" that will pose "a challenge" for mobility and safety in the midst of the highest risk period for fires. This was stated by the Director General of Interior and Emergencies, Miguel Ángel Clavero, regarding an astronomical event that will last a maximum of 105 seconds and which the Government of Aragón estimates will attract between 250,000 and 400,000 people.
Clavero appeared this Monday before the Commission of Finance, Budgets, Interior and Public Administration of the Aragonese Courts to detail the strategic plan on which the regional Executive has been working since 2024 for the upcoming "trio of eclipses" -- the total ones in 2026 and 2027 and the annular one in 2028 --, with special attention to the August 12 eclipse, when a large part of the Aragonese territory will be a privileged enclave for its observation -- the last total eclipse visible in the Peninsula dates back to 1912 --.
The moment of total darkness in Aragón will occur between 8:29 PM and 30 seconds and 8:31 PM and 15 seconds, 105 seconds that generate great uncertainty because, as the Director General of Interior and Emergencies has warned, the eclipse may concentrate many people, "but it will not be easily observable due to the orography, obstacles, cloudiness, and sunset."
In this context, Clavero has stressed that the event requires "planning and strategy": "This phenomenon is not managed from the logic of a single event, but from the management of the territory and associated risks, such as high temperatures, fires, and the fact that it is practically at dusk."
To face the unknown regarding the volume of visitors, the regional Executive has opted to set up official observation points "because it is obviously much better to have them controlled," Clavero explained. Initially, thirteen locations had been selected, which have been reduced to seven following criteria of better visibility and longer observation time, with areas ranging from 14 to 45 hectares, a minimum capacity of between 5,000 and 15,000 attendees, and parking for between 2,000 and 5,000 vehicles, in addition to good connection with the main communication routes.
The chosen areas are located in the Aragonese towns of Calamocha and Alcañiz, in Motorland -- with a capacity for 15,000 people each --, Monreal del Campo (Teruel) and the industrial estate of Épila (Zaragoza) -- prepared for 10,000 people --, as well as Ariza and Cariñena (Zaragoza) and Camarena de la Sierra, at the Javalambre ski resort (Teruel), the latter for about 5,000 people.
The so-called "frustration plan"
In all these official observation points, tourist information and prevention areas will be set up, a sanitary space with a first-aid kit, doctors, nursing staff, and an ambulance. They will also have a security device, the presence of Civil Protection technicians, firefighters, and INFOAR personnel, in addition to restrooms, waste collection service, a shade tent, and a giant screen to follow the eclipse live. This last element, proposed by Clavero in the Interministerial meeting, responds to the following logic:
"If the eclipse is not visible, frustration must be managed because if I have 15,000 people and they don't have a plan B, and they see that the cloud will not let them see the eclipse, what they will want is to move to another point, and that must be avoided, because one of the biggest threats in these eclipses is the mobility of people moving from one place to another," he stated.
The Director General admitted that the massive arrival of visitors "will surely mean an increase in usual health pathologies," for which the Health Department has designed its own comprehensive device, the 'Plan Salud Eclipse 2026', which includes a specific health plan for each of the official observation points.
To this deployment are added two specific fire prevention plans, developed together with the General Directorates of Natural Environment and Forest Management, which focus on observation areas surrounded by forest, on the "fire culture" of many tourists from Northern Europe, and, above all, on the risk that a fire would pose with thousands of people concentrated on a hill.
To reinforce security, Clavero announced that, under current regulations, access for motor vehicles to high-risk forest areas may be restricted, and limitations will also be studied for protected natural spaces.
In parallel, a specific road safety and mobility plan is being developed to avoid risky situations, such as vehicles stopping on the hard shoulder during the peak of the eclipse. Controls on public performances linked to the event will also be increased, "both legal ones and the illegal ones we already have information about," he warned.
In the field of outreach, next week all nursery and primary school students in the region will receive recommendations for safely observing the eclipse, as well as approved glasses in accordance with current regulations.
All these actions are integrated into a strategic plan from which the Government of Aragon has established an interdepartmental working group in which the General Administration of the State also participates. Six teams report to it, dedicated to security and mobility, civil protection and environmental risks, tourism, health, multimedia content production, educational campaigns, and institutional communication and outreach. Furthermore, Aragon takes an active part in the Interministerial Commission, contributing proposals and coordinating actions.
Criticism from the opposition
From the PSOE, deputy Carmen Soler has denounced the "indifference and inaction" of the Azcón Government, which she accuses of having left "everything paralyzed and nothing organized." "They are late, there are only two months left," she reproached, referring to a strategic plan "that is a powerpoint like Azcón's budget" and in which she misses more outreach and greater contact with the territory. "We feel abandoned and deeply disappointed and neglected," stated the socialist parliamentarian, who even asked Clavero to resign "if he is not up to the task."
CHA deputy Miguel Jaime agreed that "the problem will not be the eclipse, but arriving late or acting in an improvised manner." He warned of the coincidence with the patron saint festivals and the "risk of saturation" in rural areas, where safety could be compromised, and called for reflection on public services in these municipalities.
For their part, IU deputy Marta Abengochea has criticized the Executive's "terrible democratic quality" for reducing spaces for the opposition and because, in her opinion, the appearance should have been dedicated to other "more relevant" issues. In relation to the eclipse, she has requested more details on mobility in natural spaces and security measures in areas outside the official observation points.
Stance of PP and Vox
Vox parliamentarian Juan Vidal has highlighted the opportunity that the eclipse can represent for the local economy of the municipalities, although he has expressed his concern about the risk of fires, mobility problems, and unauthorized gatherings. In this regard, he has asked to anticipate these situations by monitoring social media activity.
PP deputy Lorena Tabanera has stressed that the eclipse will be "a stress test" for the Aragonese emergency system, "which will form a very large device for barely 105 seconds." She has defended the Executive's "foresight" in the face of what she described as "the Department's biggest operational challenge."