Wild boars running through Barcelona and pigs confined in Collserola: the plague's ground zero

Cerdanyola del VallèsPeople are photographing and recording the scene. In the courtyard of a convent in the upper part of Barcelona, ​​a large wild boar is running up and down. The witness who describes it says it's as big "as a cow." The building is closed, and the animal is exploring its gardens. Behind it, four police officers are trying to guide it toward a net they had set up, but it has escaped. The boar has run toward the mountain, back toward Collserola. This scene is not new in the Barcelona neighborhoods bordering Tibidabo—it's more frequent—but the outbreak of African swine fever detected not far from there means that the presence of wild boars is being noticed more than ever by the public.

People are being warned and alerted, with constant calls to the 112 emergency number about the presence of wild boars, whether they are alive or dead. According to information obtained by ARA, since Friday, when the swine fever outbreak began, Civil Protection has received 412 calls from various locations in Catalonia regarding wild boars. Some people are calling to ask how to react to the situation, but most are reporting the presence of these animals. One of the latest reports came from Cerdanyola del Vallès, very close to the epicenter of the infection, concerning a dead wild boar on the train tracks. Again, this wouldn't be news if there weren't an outbreak just a few kilometers away: "Wild boars are being run over every day," admit sources at Renfe (the Spanish national railway company). But given the critical situation, it was necessary to collect the animal and take it for analysis to rule out infection. However, everything points to it having been hit by a train. The tracks were closed for an hour and a half. There are also road closures, with dozens of barriers prohibiting entry, on the many labyrinthine access roads leading to Collserola. A resident of Cerdanyola walks her dog along a path that borders one of the mountain access roads, closely monitored by the local police. She keeps it on a leash. "It'll still run around like crazy, step in dog poop, and spread the virus," she remarks. The path, closed off by the police, leads to the Can Coll Education Center. It's a farm where schools often visit to see the animals up close. Among the animals are two domestic pigs, which have been in quarantine since Friday. So far, they've tested negative for African swine fever. The shed where they live has even been covered with netting to keep out even birds, for fear they might carry the disease. All the center's activities have been canceled.

A Rural Agents' vehicle emerges from the road, and, for the first time, another from the Military Emergency Unit (UME). There are 117 military personnel in the vicinity of Collserola. The UME has deployed three decontamination stations for vehicles, people, and animals, as well as seven teams to collect bodies or samples under biosafety conditions. The Rural Agents guide the UME van—which is stopped at a traffic light for a few minutes—to an area of orchards, again on the edge of Collserola. After a few minutes of checks, while an elderly man digs up a head of lettuce, they continue on their way.

North of the AP-7

But the epicenter of the outbreak is far away. We're in the part of Collserola that borders Barcelona, ​​and to get there you have to cross the AP-7 motorway—the animal underpasses have been closed to prevent transmission—heading towards Bellaterra. Life goes on while the specialized teams work. The lines to pick up children from Bellaterra's many schools persist. At the Autonomous University of Barcelona (UAB), classes have been held as normal, but students have been advised internally not to go to the paths that lead away from the campus and into the forest. At the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, there are animals, such as sheep and horses, but no pigs. Right in the middle of the epicenter is a riding stable. Its owner is worried that the vans carrying feed for the horses, which are confined to their stables and unable to go on their usual mountain trails, will not be allowed in. They've been warned that in the coming days they might have to disinfect their car every time they enter and leave. For the moment, no fines have been issued for violating the restrictions. Government sources say everyone is being very responsible. It's not only very dangerous because the disease could be spread, but also because the forest is a minefield, full of traps for wild boar. Every now and then, a cyclist is seen coming off a path with a warning sign: "Infected Zone".