Videos and photographs from Porto Santo residents illustrate the meteorological phenomenon.
Porto Santo was hit, late Friday afternoon, by an intense atmospheric phenomenon with heavy rain and wind, which could also be described as a tornado, causing various damages in some parts of the island.
Around 7 pm, several areas were battered by very strong winds and intense whirlwinds, which caused significant damage to infrastructure and public spaces.
At the Navigator Columbus Hotel, where an event was taking place, the wind surprised those present, knocking over chairs and shattering large windows. Damage was also reported to windows in several hotel rooms.
The island’s tennis complex was also affected, especially the padel courts, which suffered damage due to the strong winds.
Furthermore, several trees were uprooted or dragged away, and damage was also reported to the roofs of some schools in the vicinity of the Hotel Porto Santo & Spa.
The incident caused moments of shock and apprehension among residents and tourists, and mobilized numerous personnel to the scene to support the population and clean up the damage caused.
Contacted by DIÁRIO, the regional delegate of the Portuguese Institute of the Sea and the Atmosphere stated that the weather radars did not register any unusual wind conditions. However, Ricardo Tavares stressed that the precipitation levels were “almost at orange alert level”.
“In fact, there was very heavy rainfall for about 10 minutes, almost enough to trigger an orange warning. At 7 pm, nine millimeters fell, and at 7:10 pm, another 10 millimeters, meaning a total of 19 millimeters in 10 minutes,” he stated.
Regarding the wind, the official explained that there is no record of strong winds in the area covered by the radar, but this does not mean that a tornado could not have occurred, only that it did not happen at the station’s location. “Sometimes, these are very localized phenomena,” he stressed.