Leslie strikes northern Portugal "the strongest storm since 1842"

Leslie has struck Portugal with a ferocity seldom experienced. The National Civil Protection Authority confirmed on Sunday morning that "the greatest dangers have passed," but only after a night of high winds, power failures, injuries, uprooted trees, property damage and flooding.

The hurricane lost power as it made its way to the mainland yesterday evening but was classified as a sub-tropical storm system, still packing power as it barrelled into the centre and north of the country leaving widespread damage but no reported deaths.*

The storm, possibly the most powerful ever to have hit the country, moved on, much depleted, across to northern Spain but losing strength as it progresses.

Portugal’s National Civil Protection Authority reported that, "1,890 occurrences were recorded, divided by the following types: 1,218 trees fallen, 98 floods, 441 damaged structures and 75 road problems."

Of the 27 injured, "we have two firemen injured, the rest are civilians," stated Commander Belo Costa of the ANPC.

There were also, "324,400 people affected by power cuts, roads were blocked at various sites, and there’s damage to numerous vehicles and properties."

Customers have been without electricity since Saturday night as a result of the storm with EDP agreeing that the situation is "very serious."

"Although the most critical period has passed, Civil Protection has kept a Red Alert in place for Porto, Aveiro, Coimbra, Leiria, Lisbon and Setúbal, an Orange Alert for Beja, Braga, Bragança, Castelo Branco, Évora, Guarda, Portalegre, Santarém, Viana do Castelo, Vila Real and Viseu and a Yellow Alert for the district of Faro," added the Commander who said that the district of Coimbra was the most affected, followed by Aveiro, Leiria and Viseu.

According to Belo Costa on Sunday morning, "the greatest dangers have passed,” adding that Coimbra was hit the worst and the main concern is now to get the roads cleared across the northern part of the country and get traffic flowing again.

Wind speeds of 176kmph (109mph) were recorded as the storm struck last night, possibly the strongest storm since 1842 in a rare event as Atlantic hurricanes generally do not reach the Iberian Peninsula and Leslie was made more complex by a cold front approaching from the north.

The Spanish Meteorological Agency said Leslie was moving north-east across national territory with gusts of upto 100kmph recorded near Zamora early on Sunday with Asturias, Castille and León and Cantabria affected with the storm travelling across to north-eastern Spain.

The Algarve was not affected, but most areas had some welcome rainfall overnight.

The 1842 hurricane affected south-western Spain and wreaked havoc along the Algarve coasline.

In late October (1842), a highly unusual tropical cyclone formed in the far eastern Atlantic, first detected to the southwest of Madeira on October 24.

On October 26, a ship near Madeira recorded a barometric pressure of 965 mb (28.5 inHg), suggesting a hurricane of Category 2 intensity. The hurricane passed just north of Madeira on October 27, producing heavy damage in Funchal.

After brushing the north-western coast of Morocco on the night of October 28–29, the hurricane moved ashore over south-western Spain and likely became extra-tropical shortly thereafter.

As a result of the extra-tropical transition, damaging winds extended far from the storm centre and affected much of inland Spain.

Dozens of ships, including three belonging to the Spanish Navy, were lost or severely damaged in the storm. Two bridges were washed away in Cádiz and homes were destroyed in Seville. Hurricane-force winds reached as far inland as Madrid, and thousands of trees were uprooted in the province of Badajoz.

Wikipedia
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Update 15:13: * Storm Leslie caused a death in Ameiro, Montemor-o-Velho, the result of a falling tree. Later ther was news of an 81-year-old man who died in Armadoura, Pampilhosa da Serra. The cause of his death has not been revealed.

There have been 28 light casualties, 61 made homeless and almost 1,900 reported incidents to Civil Protection, according its update. The district of Coimbra was the most affected and Soure decreed a public calamity after 90% of its houses were damaged.

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