Mallorca Bulletin

WIND RED ALERT

of Spain and Portugal were on high alert yesterday as heavy rain and strong winds battered the Iberian peninsula, felling trees, disrupting transport and forcing the closure of schools in some areas. One person was in a serious condition after being struck by a falling tree in the northeastern Spanish region of Catalonia in the latest storms to hit the region in the past few weeks. Part of the A1 motorway between Portugal’s north and south collapsed on Wednesday night near the medieval city of Coimbra after a levee broke underneath. A red alert - the highest level - was declared in the northern Spanish regions of Galicia, Cantabria and the Basque Country after the arrival on Wednesday of Nils, the eighth storm to hit Spain this year. Weather agency AEMET warned of waves up to nine metres (30 feet) high. Authorities in Catalonia suspended classes and sporting events and restricted non-essential healthcare services as wind gusts of over 105 km per hour (65 mph) felled trees, disrupting road and rail traffic across the region. At least five people - including the person who was in serious condition after being hit by a tree - have been injured in the winds in Catalonia, Nuria Parlon, the head of the region’s interior department, told radio station RAC1. Seguir leyendo