The death of a 48-year-old man following a fire at the Casa Lola settlement in Sant Josep has brought renewed attention to the precarious conditions at the site, months of complaints from nearby residents and the legal dispute over the occupied property.

The Paraguayan man suffered burns to around 90% of his body when a fire broke out inside a makeshift dwelling at the property on Sunday, September 27. He was taken to Can Misses Hospital, where he died later that afternoon.

The fire is still under investigation by the Guardia Civil. Authorities have said that all hypotheses remain open and that a criminal cause has not been ruled out because there are indications the fire may have been deliberate. No conclusion about the cause of the fire has been established.

A settlement that has grown over recent months

Casa Lola is a property in the Porroig area of Sant Josep, near the road towards Es Cubells.

The site became an informal settlement after the illegal structures associated with the former Casa Lola development were demolished in 2022. In recent months, makeshift dwellings and other precarious structures have appeared on the land.

The exact number of people living at the site has not been established through a completed official census.

Sant Josep Town Hall has estimated that between 150 and 200 people could be living there, while other reports have referred more generally to dozens of occupants. The municipality has said it has not identified people in situations of extreme vulnerability among those it has been able to assess, although it has warned that the risk could increase.

Residents had been raising concerns

People living near the property have described months of problems involving noise, fires, waste, improvised electricity and water connections and alleged incidents involving occupants of the settlement.

One nearby resident interviewed by local media said neighbours had made more than 1,000 calls to police over different incidents.

Those statements are residents' accounts and have not been independently established as a complete record of police complaints.

Other incidents have been documented.

In July, Sant Josep Local Police arrested a person on suspicion of offences involving injuries and gender-based violence following an incident inside the settlement. According to the reporting, one person suffered burns involving petrol.

There have also been reports of residents entering neighbouring properties, as well as complaints concerning alleged unauthorised connections to water and electricity supplies.

The fatal fire

The fire broke out at approximately 7:17am on September 27.

Six firefighters and two fire engines attended the incident. The fire was brought under control at around 8:00am, although approximately 60 square metres of vegetation was also affected according to the local reporting.

A butane cylinder was among the objects affected by the flames.

The injured man was stabilised at the scene before being transferred by emergency medical services to Can Misses, where he was admitted to intensive care.

He died after 17:00 that afternoon.

The Guardia Civil subsequently confirmed that its investigation remains open and that it has not excluded a criminal explanation for the fire. That does not establish that the fire was intentionally started.

The property owner says she sought an eviction

The legal position surrounding Casa Lola has also become an important part of the story.

The property owner's legal representative said a complaint was filed with the courts in July over the occupation of the land and that an immediate precautionary eviction was requested at the same time.

The lawyer said the request was based partly on concerns about risks to people, the property, neighbouring residents and the environment.

This point became particularly relevant after claims circulated locally that the owner had not requested an eviction.

The owner's representative rejected those claims and said the legal request had been made months before the fatal fire.

A judge now orders the immediate eviction

The situation changed on September 30.

The Ibiza Court of Investigation No. 2 granted the precautionary measure requested by the property company, Inversiones Hoteleras Faro SL, and ordered the immediate eviction of the occupants from the Casa Lola property.

The court order concerns an alleged minor offence of usurpation. According to the judicial information reported from the order, the judge found indications of the alleged offence and concluded that the property is not a dwelling, that the occupation has a permanent character, that the occupants have no title authorising possession and that the occupation is against the owner's wishes.

The court authorised the use of public force if necessary to carry out the eviction and instructed the judicial police, Guardia Civil or Local Police to execute the order and return possession to Inversiones Hoteleras Faro SL.

The order can be challenged through a reform appeal within three days and, either directly or subsequently, through an appeal within five days.

The eviction order is a precautionary judicial measure in an ongoing case. It is not a criminal conviction of the people who have been living at the property.

The Town Hall has also sought access

Sant Josep Town Hall has said it has faced difficulties in accessing the property to establish the circumstances and needs of the people living there.

According to IB3, the municipality requested judicial authorisation to enter the property after saying that the owner had not permitted access. The Town Hall increased surveillance around the area while the judicial process was pursued.

The municipality has also raised concerns about waste, fire risk and sanitation at the site.

Mayor Vicent Roig has publicly criticised the property owner's handling of the situation and said the Town Hall estimates that between 150 and 200 people may be living there. He has also alleged that occupants were paying money to live on the land.

The property has denied receiving rent from the occupants or benefiting financially from the settlement. That allegation remains disputed and should not be presented as an established fact.

A complicated history

Casa Lola has been the subject of planning and legal controversy for several years.

The former tourist complex contained structures that were demolished by Sant Josep Town Hall in 2022 following the enforcement of planning measures.

The current situation is different: the issue now concerns people occupying land on which makeshift dwellings have subsequently appeared.

The latest court decision specifically concerns the current occupation and the alleged usurpation of the property. It should not be interpreted as a ruling on every historical planning issue connected with the former Casa Lola development.

What happens next?

The immediate next step is the implementation of the court's eviction order.

The property owner has said it is prepared to cooperate with the Guardia Civil and Sant Josep Local Police to organise the operation.

At the same time, the Guardia Civil investigation into the fatal fire continues.

The circumstances surrounding the fire, including whether it was accidental or deliberate, have not been established publicly.

The wider questions surrounding the people living at Casa Lola also remain. The authorities face the task of carrying out the judicial order while dealing with the housing, social and practical circumstances of those who have been living at the site.

For the surrounding community, the fatal fire has highlighted concerns that had been building for months.

For the people living inside the settlement, the court's decision now means that the future of their accommodation is subject to an immediate judicial eviction order.