Storm Bruna Displaces Five in Madeira and Cancels Dozens of Flights

Storm Bruna (depressão Bruna, a low-pressure system) left five people out of their home in Madeira after heavy rain flooded a house in Santo António da Serra, in the municipality of Santa Cruz. The storm also grounded dozens of flights at Madeira Airport on Saturday and forced two cruise ships to skip Funchal.

Conditions eased overnight into Sunday, but the islands remain under yellow warnings for rain, strong wind and rough seas, according to RTP Notícias and the Lusa news agency.

125 incidents across the islands

Madeira’s Proteção Civil (the regional civil protection service) logged 125 incidents between 8 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday morning, spread across almost every municipality in the autonomous region. Most involved flooding and fallen trees. Valter Ferreira, a civil protection operations commander, told RTP that 306 personnel and 122 land vehicles were sent out, and that local fire brigades and municipal civil protection teams dealt with the calls.

In Santo António da Serra, the drainage system could not cope with the volume of rain, and cars were seen floating in the water. At Chão do Areeiro, in the island’s high ground, a gust of 131 kilometers per hour was recorded.

Ferreira described the night as fairly calm compared with Saturday evening. He still warned that Sunday would bring “great instability” and asked people to plan any trips ahead of time.

Warnings from IPMA

IPMA (Portugal’s weather and sea institute) kept Madeira under an orange warning for strong wind until midnight on Saturday. An orange warning for heavy, persistent rain with thunderstorms stayed in force until 3 a.m. Sunday. Both have since dropped to yellow.

In IPMA’s scale, orange means weather conditions of moderate to high risk. Yellow signals risk for certain activities that depend on the weather.

Flights, cruises and trails

Strong wind and poor visibility left thousands of passengers without a flight at Madeira Airport on Saturday, as dozens of connections were cancelled through the day. The regional authorities closed every walking trail in the islands, and several sports events were called off.

Two cruise calls at the Port of Funchal were also dropped:

• The Queen Anne, on a 12-day cruise, was due in Funchal on Sunday and changed its itinerary.
• The Azura, which had sailed from Tenerife in the Canary Islands, cancelled its stop planned for Monday and changed course to avoid the weather.

What it means for people traveling to Madeira

For residents of mainland Portugal with trips to or from Madeira, the storm meant lost flights on Saturday, and the commander’s warning about Sunday points to more unsettled conditions while the yellow warnings last. Hikers face closed trails across the region for as long as the closure stays in place. No date for reopening the trails or for lifting the yellow warnings was given.

What to watch next

Civil protection teams resolved Saturday’s incidents at municipal level, and the five displaced residents of Santo António da Serra are the only people reported out of their homes. Travelers can follow IPMA’s warning levels for Madeira and their airline’s flight status, since Sunday is still expected to be unstable.

Source: RTP Notícias