Firefighters from the Generalitat rescue a person whose vehicle was swept away by the water in Vilassar de Mar this Sunday during the heavy rains. BOMBERS
The storms that hit eastern Spain this Sunday have caused hundreds of incidents, mainly in Catalonia and the Balearic Islands. These two municipalities, together with the Valencian Community, are on Orange Alert (major risk) this Sunday, while Andalusia, Aragon, Murcia, Navarre, the Basque Country, the Canary Islands and the Autonomous City of Melilla are on Yellow (slight risk). lower risk). .
The Balearic Islands have taken the worst part, where wind gusts of up to 122 kilometers per hour and precipitation of up to 30 liters per square meter in one hour were registered on Mallorca. The State Meteorological Agency has activated the orange alert throughout the archipelago due to strong or very strong storms with exceptional electrical installations, very strong or gale force wind gusts, torrential rain and hail greater than two centimeters. One injury occurred during the morning: a pregnant woman was slightly injured when she was hit by a sign blown away by the wind in the Mallorcan municipality of Calviá.
The first storm swept across the archipelago from south to north, first affecting Ibiza and Formentera at noon, then Mallorca and the island of Menorca. Two flights to Ibiza were diverted to Palma and Madrid early in the morning, on a day when more than 1,400 aircraft movements were expected at the islands’ airfields. During the morning and as the situation worsened, Aena reported the cancellation and rerouting of dozens of flights due to adverse weather conditions. A zero rate was reported around noon at Palma and Ibiza airports, meaning planes are unable to take off or land due to difficulties controlling air traffic due to meteorological complications.
A pregnant woman has been injured in Mallorca when she was hit by a poster blown away by the force of the wind in Calvià. In addition, according to the local council, a man was rescued after kayaking around the Malgrats Islands and two minors were rescued in good condition in a rocky area of Illetes beach after being swept away by the wind while riding on an inflatable mat. The consistory has raised the red flag on all the beaches in the municipality and closed Paguera Boulevard due to falling trees.
The city of Palma was also one of the cities hardest hit by the storm. Wind speeds of more than 100 kilometers an hour uprooted trees on the central Paseo Mallorca and knocked over palm trees on the Paseo Sagrera. Scaffolding has fallen from the facade of an apartment building and is at the mercy of the wind, and chairs and parasols on numerous terraces have been blown away by the wind. There are dozens of cars affected, the city council has ordered the closure of Bellver Castle and has also banned passage through some parts of the city, such as Paseo Sagrera. Due to the storm, the railway company of Mallorca has temporarily suspended the traffic of trains and metro. In the municipality of Felanitx, part of the facade of the bullring has collapsed.
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In the port of Palma, the strong wind has destroyed the berths of the cruise ship of the British shipping company P&O. The boat remained adrift in the west dock and fell from side to side. A pilot had to go out and try to tow it and moor it again. Train services on the island of Mallorca have been suspended due to the intensity of the storm and the islands’ port authority has canceled reservations for all buoy fields until Tuesday. The shipping companies that operate between the islands have also suspended several routes, such as those scheduled for this Sunday afternoon by the Balearia shipping company, connecting Ciutadella to Alcúdia and Ciutadella to Barcelona. The orange alert will remain active throughout the day on Sunday and storms are expected to hit the islands again throughout the afternoon, with notable occurrences in northern Mallorca and the island of Menorca.
The heavy rain has also caused property damage in Barcelona, where the tunnel in Plaza de España was flooded and planned entertainment activities on Paseo de Lluís Companys for the second leg of the Tour of Spain in the city had to be cancelled. The Civil Protection of the Generalitat maintains the alert of the Inuncat plan due to heavy rains in Catalonia, which was activated at noon on Saturday. The Servei Meteorològic de Catalunya (SMC) has highlighted the intensity of the rainfall collected in the Pyrenees up to Sunday morning, with 94.1 millimeters in Lac Redon and 88.6 millimeters in Espot (Lleida). It also rained heavily in the Ripollès region and in the coastal regions of Barcelona. Firefighters have conducted half a thousand calls to minor flooding since Saturday.
At half past eight in the morning, in Vilassar de Mar (Barcelona), they rescued a person trapped in their vehicle, which was swept away by the water until it was trapped under a bridge. They also intervened at the Llobregat hospital, where a tree fell on a parked car, and in Pallejà (Barcelona), where a wall fell on the block of flats next door. The main damage was concentrated in the Prioritat region of Tarragona, where the hail caused severe damage in Falset and damaged rice crops in various parts of the Ebre Delta.
These would be the most important records at the time of Avui Day.
Stresses Molló – Fabert with 98.6mm and also Cabrils with 55.4mm, 31.4mm of agony in just 30 minutes. pic.twitter.com/X5WxWIRVJ2—Meteocat (@meteocat) August 27, 2023
Elsewhere in Catalonia, the Santuari de Queralt collected 34.9 millimeters of water in 30 minutes, while Berga (Barcelona) and Olot (Girona) recorded 21.7 millimeters of water in half an hour. Civil Protection has informed Europa Press that the Inuncat plan is likely to be deactivated due to heavy rains on Sunday afternoon, weather forecasts correct.
Rescue a person from a vehicle that has crossed the water to Vilassar de Mar, at the Alçada de la Ronda de Vilassar on Maria Vidal Street (before 08:35). The cotxe has stranded on the shore of the bridge and they have kept the occupant in perfect condition.#bomberscat pic.twitter.com/CbsLUSLSr7
— Bombers (@bomberscat) August 27, 2023
Specifically, between 10:30 p.m. yesterday and 10 a.m. this morning, the fire service responded to 63 alerts for leaks and water accumulation, mainly in the northern Barcelona metropolitan area, according to the Fire Department. To these services are added the 127 that the fire service called on last night between 3pm and 10:30pm to intervene in the event of small floods, landslides and falling branches.
The storm was also felt in Malaga, where three people were injured by fallen branches and objects after 80 wind-related incidents. Two of the injured were taken to hospital; One person was injured in Benalmádena by the impact of fallen branches and another person was hit by the pole of a tent during a wedding at a farm in Ronda. Another victim in the Paseo del Parque in the capital Malaga was treated right there.
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