- Orihuela Costa opens its first tanatorio, a much-needed funeral home on the coast.
- Previously, funerals and wakes were held in nearby towns such as Torrevieja and Pilar de la Horadada.
- Construction faced lengthy bureaucratic procedures and COVID-19 related delays.
- The tanatorio features a 1,500 m² facility with modern services including streaming and catering for multicultural needs.
- No cemetery yet exists locally, a major issue for residents who must travel 35 km for burials.
- Local authorities and community groups continue to push for a civil cemetery to serve the growing population.
Orihuela Costa Opens Its First Tanatorio: Breaking New Ground for Funeral Services
after years of waiting, Orihuela Costa now has its very first tanatorio (funeral home), offering residents long-overdue local funeral and wake services. Until now, families had to travel to Torrevieja, Pilar de la Horadada, or even San Pedro del Pinatar in the Murcia region to hold wakes and funerals. This new center changes that, providing convenience and bringing these services directly to the vibrant Orihuela Costa community.
location and Features of the New tanatorio
The tanatorio is situated in Villamartín Sur, specifically at the corner of Calle Diamante and Amatista. This residential area is surrounded by multi-family homes and closely located near well-known landmarks like the Leroy Merlin store in La Zenia.
- Facility Size: Approximately 1,500 square meters
- Services Offered: Conventional wakes, funerals, incineration services with temporary urn storage, ceremony live streaming, and catering for diverse cultural needs
- Design: Includes columbarium units inside a discreet, dark-colored wall with illuminated urns visible only during visits
Challenges Faced in Establishing the Tanatorio
Bringing this project to life was anything but straightforward. Sanitary regulations require a minimum distance of 250 meters from residential buildings, making site selection limited and complex. The entire licensing process – including major works and activity permit approvals – dragged over three years, starting from 2019 and delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Construction began in September 2023, planned for 18 months, but has slightly extended beyond that. This lengthy timeline reflects the complexity of navigating urban planning in a coastal area with scarce land reserved mostly for profitable residential uses.
About Pompas Fúnebres Samper: A Generational Legacy
The driving force behind the new tanatorio is Pompas Fúnebres Samper,a family-run funeral business operating since 1950.Francisca Samper, the company’s manager and third-generation operator, shared insights into the project’s challenges and commitment to the community.
- In 1987, they opened the Virgen del Pilar tanatorio in Pilar de la Horadada – the first funeral home in the southern province area.
- In 2009, they incorporated their own crematorium.
- For Orihuela Costa, they opted not to introduce cremation on-site initially to avoid neighborhood resistance, though ashes can be stored temporarily in columbariums.
Lack of Local Cemetery Continues to Be a Major Concern
Despite the tanatorio’s opening,Orihuela Costa still lacks its own cemetery – a vital gap that has been a source of frustration for over 20 years. Residents are forced to travel approximately 35 kilometers to Orihuela town for burials, which is an inconvenient and emotional burden for many.
| Issue | Details |
|---|---|
| Population | 30,000 registered; 90,000 residents most of the year; 150,000 in summer |
| Cemetery Supply | Single church-owned cemetery nearing full capacity |
| Past Plans | 2014 proposal for two secular municipal cemeteries near urban and coastal areas |
| Main obstacle | Urban planning and land availability – requires updating city’s General Urban Plan (from the 1990s) |
Civic groups like Unidos por la Costa and political parties, including the Popular Party (PP), have advocated for the establishment of a civil cemetery – even one allowing burial of pets – as a basic public service to serve the growing and diverse population. Orihuela city authorities now face the challenge of updating land-use policies to secure space for this essential infrastructure.
Looking Ahead: meeting the Needs of a Growing Community
Orihuela Costa’s first tanatorio is a milestone, finally filling a critical service gap that residents endured for years.However, the journey towards a fully self-sufficient funerary and burial infrastructure continues. With steady population growth and an increasingly less transient community, local demand for additional services like cemeteries will only intensify.
This project also reflects the evolving cultural fabric of the region, catering to many foreign residents with services such as live streaming and diverse catering options to respect international funeral traditions.
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