Burjassot: 16 days of free concerts and fireworks from Aug 1

Today's essentials (5 key points)

• Burjassot launches its Sant Roc patronal fiestas on Saturday August 1 with 16 days of free concerts, capped by gigs from Carlos Baute and Maldita Nerea.
• Valencia's EMT will add 30 buses and 400 staff on Wednesday August 12 to move crowds toward the Malvarrosa for the total solar eclipse, according to Valencia Secreta.
• Metrovalencia has installed a shelter at Picanya station after passenger complaints about the lack of shade, reports Valencia Plaza.
• Ocide has been awarded the 14.3 million euro water cycle works in Benetússer after CHM pulled out, according to Valencia Plaza.
• Spain's prime minister warned of "difficult hours" ahead against the wildfires after 75,000 people were evacuated across the Madrid and Valencia regions, according to franceinfo.

Today's essentials

Burjassot: 16 days of free concerts and fireworks from Aug 1. Burjassot, on Valencia's northern edge, opens 16 days of free fiestas for its patron Sant Roc from Saturday August 1 to Sunday August 16, and according to Valencia Extra and the Ajuntament de Burjassot every concert and traditional act is free of charge.

The programme kicks off on Saturday August 1 with the Festival Remember at 7pm on Plaza Emilio Castelar, the main square right in front of the town hall, where most of the fiesta acts are staged. From August 2 to 8, the statue of Sant Roc is carried each evening at 7.30pm through the town's neighbourhoods, parishes and fallera commissions, each procession preceded by a 7pm eucharist.

The musical highlights land in the second week, all on Plaza Emilio Castelar and all free. On Tuesday August 11 an embutidos (cured meats) tasting at 7pm is followed by the Orquesta Platino at 11pm. Then come the two big draws: Venezuelan-Spanish pop star Carlos Baute plays a free show on Wednesday August 12 at 11pm, and the band Maldita Nerea takes the same stage on Thursday August 13 at 11pm, per the Ajuntament de Burjassot and valenciaextra.com.

The traditional climax runs from August 14 to 16. Friday August 14 brings two late-night mascletàs (at midnight and 12.45am), the Gran Coetà firecracker run and a discomóvil around 2am. On Friday August 15, the Assumption, there is a mass at noon, a mascletà on Calle Pintor Goya around 2pm and a procession at 8pm. Sant Roc's day itself, Sunday August 16, opens with a despertà (waking call) at 8am and the Misa Mayor at the Parroquia de San Miguel at 9am, with horchata and fartons handed out after the hermitage mass, before the fireworks around 1am.

Getting there is easy without a car: Burjassot sits directly north of Valencia and is on the Metrovalencia network, so you can reach the fiestas by metro and skip the parking problem entirely. Plaza Emilio Castelar, the Ermita de Sant Roc and the Parroquia de San Miguel are all within a short walk of each other in the town centre.

What this changes for you: this is a genuinely free, family-friendly way to fill mid-August evenings a few metro stops from the city, with no ticket and no reservation needed. If you only pick two nights, block out Wednesday August 12 for Carlos Baute and Thursday August 13 for Maldita Nerea, and stay in town over the August 14 to 16 weekend for the mascletàs, Gran Coetà and closing fireworks, according to the Ajuntament de Burjassot.

Weather today

Warm and grey across the province. Valencia city sits between 25 and 31 degrees today, Saturday August 1, under an overcast sky with almost no rain risk (3%) and a light breeze up to 15 km/h, according to Open-Meteo.

Inland the picture is similar but a touch hotter by day: Bunyol runs from 25 to 32 degrees, also cloudy, with a 3% chance of rain and winds to 16 km/h. On the southern coast, Tavernes de la Valldigna stays between 25 and 31 degrees with no rain expected and the same gentle breeze.

It is muggy rather than scorching, so light clothing and water are enough for the day. The cloud cover keeps the sun off but holds the warmth overnight, which makes the late-evening fiesta concerts comfortable without being cold.

Transport & traffic

• A shelter at last for Picanya station. Valencia Plaza reports that Metrovalencia has installed a canopy at Picanya station following repeated passenger complaints about the lack of shade. For anyone waiting on the platform through the summer heat, the new shelter is a small but real improvement: it means less time exposed to the sun during the midday and afternoon gaps between trains. It also signals that Metrovalencia is responding to rider feedback on the comarca lines, where open, unshaded stops have long been a common gripe.
• 30 extra EMT buses for the August 12 eclipse. According to Valencia Secreta, Valencia's EMT will roll out 30 additional buses and 400 workers on Wednesday August 12 to connect the neighbourhoods with the Malvarrosa for the total solar eclipse. The reinforcement mainly targets the lines feeding the Malvarrosa, expected to be the prime observation point, so plan for a busy seafront and packed buses that day. If you want to watch the eclipse from the beach, aim to travel well before the peak and factor in crowds, both heading out and coming back.

What's changing for you

• Benetússer water works handed to Ocide. Ocide has been awarded the water cycle works in Benetússer for 14.3 million euros after the previous contractor, CHM, pulled out, according to Valencia Plaza. If you live in Benetússer, this is the project set to modernise the local water and sewage network, so expect roadworks and phased disruption as the contract gets under way. The change of contractor matters because CHM's withdrawal had left the works in limbo, and the new award puts them back on track.

Local news to know

• PM warns of "difficult hours" as 75,000 flee wildfires. Spain's prime minister has warned of "difficult hours" still to come against the wildfires after 75,000 people were evacuated across the Madrid and Valencia regions, according to franceinfo.
• PSPV presses Pérez Llorca over Alicante public housing. elDiario.es Comunitat Valenciana reports that the PSPV is demanding regional leader Pérez Llorca act on the Alicante public-housing (VPO) scandal and "recover them for the public housing stock", with socialist deputy José Díaz leading the criticism.
• Alicante council refuses to buy back the disputed flats. Alicante's council has ruled out buying back the public-housing flats returned by PP officials, despite mayor Barcala's earlier promise, with the urbanism councillor calling the move "not sustainable", according to elDiario.es Comunitat Valenciana.
• 20-plus shows in a 2,000-year-old Roman theatre. According to Valencia Secreta, a 2,000-year-old Roman theatre just 30 minutes from Valencia is hosting more than 20 performances this season.

Tonight and tomorrow, Valencia

• Free summer nights in Cullera. Cullera is filling its weekend summer nights with free live concerts and family activities under a new edition of "Nits d'Estiu a Cullera", according to Valencia Bonita. The open-air programme runs over the weekends, is free, and mixes live music with activities for children, making it an easy outing for families along the coast south of Valencia.
• The fire-lit Noche de las Hachas returns. According to Valencia Bonita, Castielfabib, deep in the Rincón de Ademuz, brings back its Noche de las Hachas, when the village turns off its lights and is lit only by fire.

See the full agenda, tonight and tomorrow