Status: 03/01/2023 4:09 p.m
Snow and rain have caused chaos on the holiday island of Mallorca. Flooding and several emergencies occurred. The clean-up work has already started – the national civil protection unit is also helping.
After the onset of winter with heavy snowfall on Mallorca, the clean-up work has begun. The northwest with the Serra de Tramuntana mountain range and the east of the island are particularly affected. The Spanish weather service reported up to 1.40 meters of snow in places at altitudes over 800 meters. Unusual amounts of rain fell at lower altitudes. There were also stormy winds and high waves on the coasts.
Sometimes it even snowed on some beaches. But the snow didn’t stay long in the bathing bays. Palma was largely spared, but the asphalt surface of several streets collapsed due to undermining.
As reported by Spanish television, 420 emergency calls were received in Mallorca by morning. In the meantime, the national civil protection unit UME is also on duty to clear roads that are particularly high up from snow and to support the rescue work. Emergency services were sometimes only able to reach people after hours.
Day trippers were stuck in the pilgrimage site
In the Lluc monastery, numerous day-trippers were snowed in without cell phone reception and electricity. After all, the place of pilgrimage has enough places to sleep and food. On Tuesday evening, mountain rescue reached the monastery in the north of the island. Most of the snowed-in people spent the night there.
The situation was more dangerous for a family with two small children who wanted to spend the night in a mobile home on a mountain pass. A pine tree fell on her vehicle at night, as reported by the German-language media “Mallorca Magazin” and “Mallorca Zeitung”. Rescuers could only reach the family, who was already suffering from hypothermia, on foot.
Storm damage mainly in the west
It wasn’t just the snow that bothered people. The strong storm caused damage, especially in the east of the island, as reported by the newspaper “Diario de Mallorca”. Roofs were torn off and trees fell, heavy rain caused flooding.
In Pollença, a village in the north, 171 liters of water per square meter fell within 24 hours. Normally small watercourses became torrents and submerged the shore areas. Cellars and underground garages were also full.
Warning of waves up to twelve meters high
The storm “Juliette” moved east towards Italy during the course of the day. For the coasts of Mallorca and Menorca, the authorities initially warned of strong storms and waves up to twelve meters high. There was also concern of further flooding and flash flooding as a result of the heavy snowfall.
Winter weather is also gripping much of mainland Spain at the moment, with unusually low temperatures, snow and icy winds.
With information from Marc Hoffmann, ARD Studio Madrid