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WEATHER

WATCH: Spain’s Mallorca battered by storm with gale force winds and heavy rain

Strong winds and heavy rains slammed Spain on its Mediterranean coast on Sunday, particularly the Balearic island of Mallorca, causing serious damage and flight disruptions.

Published: 28 August 2023 09:11 CEST
WATCH: Spain's Mallorca battered by storm with gale force winds and heavy rain
Fallen trees and flooded streets were also reported across the region. (Photo by Josep LAGO / AFP)

Gusts of up to 120 kilometres per hour (75 miles per hour), downpours and hail hit the Balearic islands as well as Catalonia and Valencia on mainland Spain, which were all under a high-risk warning by the national meteorological agency Aemet.

Local authorities reported several people were injured, according to the Spanish press.

Thousands of people in the Balearics have been left without electricity.

Fallen trees and flooded streets were also reported across the region.

The wind broke the moorings of a 330-metre (1,080 feet) cruise ship stationed in Palma, on the island of Mallorca, and drove it into a moored oil tanker, injuring six people, the Balearic islands port authority said.

Spanish airport operator Aena said 24 flights were cancelled and 29 were diverted to and from the islands. Up to 100 flights to and from the Balearics were reported affected on Monday. 

Aemet has extended the weather warning until Monday for a small portion of the archipelago and Catalonia.

The risk is expected to decrease by Tuesday.

The storm came with a drop in temperatures, which follows Spain’s fourth heatwave this summer that had ended Thursday.

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VALENCIA

Why a row is brewing over Valencia’s refusal to hang the LGBTQ+ flag

A culture war battle is brewing in Valencia after the right-wing city council decided not to hang the LGBTQ+ flag on the balcony of the town hall building just a few hours before International Pride Day.

Published: 2 July 2024 10:22 CEST
Why a row is brewing over Valencia's refusal to hang the LGBTQ+ flag

This has caused outrage among the city’s LGBTQ+ community and beyond, with national politicians wading into the debate and controversial comments from city council members and even the city’s mayor.

Valencia’s city council is a coalition of the centre-right Partido Popular and far-right Vox party.

In response to the decision, the opposition PSPV then hung a huge 60 metre long LGBTQ+ flag from its party headquarters in front of the town hall.

Faced with criticism from opposition parties, the city’s PP mayor, María José Catalá, stated that the council won’t hang the flag from the town hall because, if it did, it would also be obliged to put up “all the flags and social needs” that Valencia has.

“I respect the freedom of my opposition to put up whatever they consider in their offices, but if I put up the Pride flag I also have to put up the Alzheimer’s, ALS or cancer flags,” Catalá said.

The comment has caused widespread anger. Spain’s Minister for Equality, Ana Redondo, challenged Catalá on social media. “Loving is not an illness. The WHO eliminated homosexuality from its list of psychiatric illnesses in 1990,” the minister said.

The Socialist-led Spanish government is studying whether to take legal action against Valencia’s mayor, to which she has replied “I’m not a homophobe, give it a rest!”. Other members of her government have accused the opposition of politicising Pride celebrations. 

In response to the growing criticism, sources from the town hall have stressed to Spanish state broadcaster RTVE that no flags or banners were placed on the town hall balcony because, as announced last November, they have been replaced by two digital screens which are used to celebrate international days, such as International Pride Day, which projected LGBTQ+ material in the weekend leading up.

“The problem is that you’re not in power now, and you’re bothered by the PP being in government and that we’ve celebrated Pride in our city, that’s the problem,” PP politician Rocio Gil told the Valencian City Hall.

“We’ve carried out the same celebrations that you did (Socialists) and even more activities”.

In addition, 200 posters were put up on billboards around the city, seven buses were given special LGBTQ+ designs, and the outside of the town hall itself was illuminated with a projection of the LGTBQ+ flag.

It’s not the first time that a row break outs in Spain over the refusal of right-wing governed town halls to hang LGBTQ+ flags.

In fact, Guadalajara, Toledo, Talavera de la Reina and Ciudad Real have all followed Valencia City Hall’s example this year. 

Spain consistently ranks among the most gay-friendly countries in the world according to international studies but there is opposition in some sectors of society to progressive measures such as these.

READ ALSO: Is Spain really a tolerant country when it comes to LGBTIQ+ people?

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