Man sneaks into Estepona health centre with two large knives and threatens nurse

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A worker at the Estepona West Health Centre reads the manifesto demanding specific safety measures after the incident on the 15th. SUR. Health and safety Man sneaks into Estepona health centre with two large knives and threatens nurse

The Centro de Salud Estepona Oeste staff have scheduled a rally every day over the week to demand a review of healthcare security protocols

Emma Pérez-Romera

Estepona

Tuesday, 20 January 2026, 14:13

A nurse at Centro de Salud Estepona Oeste was threatened with two large knives by a man who managed to sneak into a consultation room on 15 January.

The incident happened around 10.24am, when the man entered the health centre, reportedly under the influence of some substance and claiming that he was being chased by someone. The nurse managed to keep calm and take control of the situation until the only security guard at the centre arrived.

According to other workers at the centre, the man entered the room and locked the door. While waiting for the guard and, later, the National and the Local Police, the nurse managed to talk him out of any serious actions and into "moving away from the door to prevent any injuries" that he could receive. This way, she managed to get out and leave the door open.

Tense encounter with the police

Although the individual was calmer at first, he once again became violent when the police arrived. He started wielding the knives he was holding. Access to the area was cut off and, after some tense moments, the police managed to restrain him. As the staff explained, some of the people who had witnessed the scene suffered anxiety attacks.

The nurse later confessed that she had thought of the worst during the incident, but she truly felt the emotional impact a few hours later. She is currently on sick leave due to post-traumatic stress disorder and she is receiving psychological treatment and support.

An obsolete centre lacking up-to-date security measures

The building, which is nearly 50 years old, has serious safety deficiencies, according to the workers: consultation rooms with no alternative exits, no proper escape routes, no emergency doors and a design that turns some area into a "death trap". "If there was a fire or if an assailant gained access to the interior of the centre, we would have no way of evacuating the staff," they said.

The healthcare professionals have also denounced the lack of institutional response and communication with higher authorities on the day of the incident. "We have not received a single call from any of our managers, neither risk prevention, nor the area management, nor the territorial delegation or the Sas, nothing," they said.

The professional approach of the nurse to the traumatic event and the security guard's actions have been recognised, while the lack of support for vulnerable "health personnel in the face of armed violence" has been denounced.

Among the staff's demands of the regional ministry of health, the Andalusian health service and the territorial delegation are the urgent revision of security protocols, the improvement of access controls and surveillance, unlimited psychological and legal support for victims, judicial rigour against the aggressor and a firm commitment to zero tolerance against aggressions in the health sector.

"At this point, we are not making a request. It is a demand for security, dignity and respect," they say.

Throughout this week, the Estepona health centre's staff are going to gather at the doors of their workplace, at 12pm every day, to make their poor working conditions known and to make their demands heard.