A clip of a bull lashed to a flat’s railing has set local social media on fire in Fuengirola, hours after the town’s Romeria in honour of the Virgin of the Rosario left the parish church.

Fuengirolasequeja posted the footage. Viewers saw a working ox standing by a metal fence, looking lonely, and comment threads filled with complaints about how the animal was being treated.

Town hall and police call it a planned stop (honestly)

Fuengirola Town Hall and Local Police sources told 101TV nothing irregular had happened. That stretch, running parallel to Calle Cordoba, is the agreed dawn meeting point where oxen are usually hitched to the floats before the pilgrimage leaves town. The trouble is, no one was with it.

Officers were close by, those sources said, so no incident and no risk developed. What the camera caught, they added, was a brief, scheduled pause: “a matter of minutes.”

Sunday’s route is the usual one. After the 10am pilgrims’ mass at the Rosario parish, a replica of the Virgin travels on an ox-drawn cart from Plaza de la Constitucion toward Parque El Esparragal in Mijas. Riders, decorated waggons and walkers follow. Return is due from about 7pm.

Why the clip travelled so fast

Ox carts still open this romeria every year. Many locals treat that as an ordinary Andalucian custom. Others see a huge animal with horns parked against a residential fence and want it gone from busy streets. Spanish pet rules often leave working oxen in a different legal box, which is why these videos spark heat even when councils say the stop was brief and watched.

This row is not quite in the August carriage crash category in Plaza de la Constitucion, when a horse bolted in high heat and two women were hurt. That smash reopened the Costa del Sol argument over tourist calesas.  Fuengirola’s big week, the Feria del Rosario, runs 6 to 12 October. EWN’s 2026 feria guide has concerts and street times. Last weekend’s Fuengirola a Caballo already put horses back in the same central streets.

No injury, no fine and no PACMA filing has been published for this ox. And no tipsy tourists stumbled upon it, thankfully. Officials say the animal was where it was meant to be. Online, plenty of people still want working beasts kept off railings in a packed resort town. Where the owners of the animal were at the time is up for debate.

Residents of Los Iberos, a Velez-Malaga village, are set to benefit from a €728,840 investment to improve a key road.

Malaga Provincial Council has included the project in its 2026 Plan Vía-ble, a €5.2 million programme covering five roads across the province. For people living in Los Iberos, the work will focus on 2.7 kilometres of the access road connecting the hamlet with the MA-3203.

The long-awaited repairs will tackle deformed sections of the road, while new covered drainage channels will be installed where the route is narrow. Road markings and metal safety barriers are also planned.

A useful link towards the A-7

Connection to the MA-3203 is important because the provincial road provides a route towards the A-7, giving residents a link to the coastal road network.

The Los Íberos road also forms part of a route between Macharaviaya and Cajiz, so the project has wider value for people travelling between rural parts of the Velez-Malaga area.

For British residents who live in or drive through the countryside around Velez-Malaga, better maintained roads can make trips to shops, schools, medical services and the coast less awkward.

Five roads share €5.2 million

Plan Vía-ble will fund four other projects in Malaga province. Alhaurin el Grande will receive €1.4 million for three kilometres of the road to Villa del Guadalhorce, including wider carriageway sections, drainage and new signs.

Coin has been allocated €1.3 million to repair 1.7 kilometres of the Camino de la Charca, including drainage, slope stabilisation and safety barriers.

Igualeja will receive €1.1 million to improve the Camino de El Toril connection with the A-397, while Teba will get €694,184 for 5.2 kilometres of its road towards Cañete la Real.

More than €16 million spent since 2022

The latest projects take total Plan Vía-ble investment over the past four years to more than €16 million, covering 19 projects completed or launched. For the Velez-Malaga area, however, the focus is closer to home: improving a 2.7-kilometre road and making the journey from Los iberos towards the A-7 safer and easier.

Torrox will celebrate its 2026 Feria from Wednesday, September 30 to Sunday, October 4, with free concerts, traditional celebrations, horse riding displays and family entertainment.

The five-day programme of events gives residents and visitors plenty of chances to enjoy the town without having to pay to see the main evening concerts. Music includes Raya Real on the opening night, Miguel Campello on Thursday, Maki & Maria Artés on Friday, Javier Ojeda on Saturday and Paco Candela on Sunday. There will also be performances from Play, Malamanera and POP FM, plus music at the Caseta del Mayor.

Horse lovers have plenty to see

The Feria has a strong equestrian side, with three events taking place at La Granja. A traditional horse parade leaves La Granja at 5pm on Friday, October 2, heading towards the Convent. Riders will be dressed in traditional Spanish clothing.

Saturday brings a Grand Equestrian Show at Complejo La Granja from 5pm, followed by an equestrian ribbon race in the same area at 5pm on Sunday.

Family fun and a traditional finale

Sunday’s Feria de Día starts at 1pm, giving visitors a chance to enjoy the celebrations during daylight hours.

The religious side of the Feria takes centre stage later, with the patron saints Nuestra Señora de las Nieves and San Roque carried in procession from the parish church to their sanctuary at 8pm.

Fireworks are scheduled for 10.30pm before Paco Candela takes to the stage at 11.30pm.

Families are also catered for. Wednesday is Children’s Day, with reduced prices on the fairground rides, while the attractions at Llano de la Almazara will operate without music or noise until 9pm throughout the Feria.

For British residents looking for a taste of traditional Andalusian celebrations close to home, Torrox’s Feria combines live music with horses, fairground fun and some of the town’s oldest traditions.