Land under on Menorca Severe storm sweeps across the vacation island - air travelers are stranded in Palma
The largest island in the Balearic Islands was not hit as hard by the severe weather as feared.
Image: dpa
Travelers were stranded at the airport and had to spend the night on blankets and air mattresses.
Image: dpa
Menorca was hit the hardest by the violent storms over the eastern Mediterranean.
Image: dpa
The largest island in the Balearic Islands was not hit as hard by the severe weather as feared.
Image: dpa
Travelers were stranded at the airport and had to spend the night on blankets and air mattresses.
Image: dpa
Menorca was hit the hardest by the violent storms over the eastern Mediterranean.
Image: dpa
A violent storm has caused considerable damage on Menorca. On the largest Balearic island of Mallorca, the situation looks milder. Nevertheless, many vacationers are stuck at the airport.
16.08.2024, 18:05
dpa
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- A severe storm has caused considerable damage on Menorca and flooded parts of the island.
- Some people had taken refuge on the roofs of their flooded houses.
- Mallorca, the largest of the Balearic Islands, was less affected by the storm than feared.
The smaller Balearic island of Menorca was hit hard by severe storms. Houses, roads and fields were flooded, especially in the center of the island in the municipality of Es Mercadal, as the newspaper "Última Hora" reported.
More than 200 liters of rain per square meter were measured there within a few hours on Thursday. Some people had taken refuge on the roofs of their flooded houses.
The police released a video showing how several people and their pets were rescued from a flat roof by helicopter. In the town of Alaior, cars were swept away by the water. According to initial findings, there were no victims due to numerous warnings about the storm.
Mallorca less badly affected
Mallorca, the largest of the Balearic Islands, was less affected by the storm than feared. It rained heavily there too and some streets, such as in the town of Sóller in the northwest of the island, were temporarily under water. However, the highest alert level declared by the national weather service Aemet was quickly lifted.
For many returning travelers at Palma airport, this was hardly any consolation. Due to the storms that swept across the Balearic Islands on Wednesday and Thursday, numerous flights were canceled - 40 of them on Wednesday alone.
Some travelers were stranded at the airport and spent the night on the floor, as the German-language island newspapers "Mallorca Zeitung" and "Mallorca-Magazin" reported.
A family of five with a small child from Oberhausen, for example, was told by the airline Eurowings that after their canceled flight on Thursday evening, they would probably only be able to fly back to Germany together on Monday, as the "Mallorca Zeitung" reported. And then not to Düsseldorf as booked, but to Berlin and from there by onward flight to their actual destination of Düsseldorf. Travelers from other airlines also reported similar experiences.
Additional flights do not cover return travel needs
When asked by dpa, the airline Eurowings emphasized that it regrets the inconvenience for passengers and is doing everything it can to get them home as quickly as possible. Due to the thunderstorm front over the Balearic Islands, numerous flights had to be canceled on Wednesday and Thursday, the company announced.
Although 15 additional flights to and from Mallorca had been organized, this did not cover the entire return journey requirement, as the summer vacations in North Rhine-Westphalia also ended this weekend.