Although it is true that in Pitiusas waters there are many inexperienced sailors during the summer season, the storm that was experienced yesterday and that seriously affected the island of Formentera, stunned vacationers but also professionals of the sea. In just over half an hour that lasted what many described as a “hurricane”, dozens of boats were swept away by the force of the wind until they ran aground in areas such as Cala Saona, ses Illetes and s’Estany des Peix, causing moments of anguish and disbelief in their crews.
Apart from the considerable material damage, the tragedy overflew over the smaller pitiusa with the disappearance of a well-known fisherman of the island that, against all odds, appeared safe and sound, floating in the sea, clinging to the remains of his llaüt, about five o’clock in the afternoon. All “a miracle, he has been born again”, according to his sister at the doors of the Hospital of Formentera where he was transferred after being located by his colleagues.
“We knew a storm was coming, but not at this level,” lamented Maurizia yesterday, an Italian woman who had just been brought ashore in a life raft from the rented sailboat she was occupying that was stranded on its side in es Cavall d’en Borras. “Is this normal around here?”, she wondered incredulously.
Many of the injured boats had moved to this area at the beginning of ses Illetes, believing themselves safe. Some of them had also intended to head for Ibiza that morning and had started the journey, but the strong gusts of wind, which according to the Aemet had warned could reach up to 100 kilometers per hour, did not allow them to do so and they returned to seek shelter.
This is what happened to the owners of a boat from Vinaroz (Castellón) who had been on the coast of Formentera for three days. “We had heard the forecast, but the data fluctuated a lot, we thought it would pass and that’s it, but it has caught us squarely, in fact, that’s our boat,” lamented Balma pointing to Nolasco, a motorboat of about nine meters perched on a rock. “It’s beyond repair, look at the state of the hull and the engines,” he commented with resignation.
The images of the DANA in Ibiza and Formentera
Cala Saona was another problematic area yesterday, with three stranded boats. In one of them there were moments of great tension, as it got snagged on a rocky ledge and its crew members had to be rescued by the emergency services and several private individuals. Unfortunately, in this case there were nine injured, two of them seriously, who were transferred to the Hospital de Formentera. By late yesterday, seven had been discharged and the other two remained hospitalized with trauma to a leg and an arm.
And on land, serious damage in places like Beso, Cala Duo or es Molí de Sal, which saw how their terraces were destroyed by the strong gusts of wind.
Shipwreck and rescue
But undoubtedly, the great protagonist of yesterday’s event was Francisco Torres Costa, Xicu, a 54-year-old fisherman who had gone out to sail in the morning in the area of Punta Rotja and whose trail was lost around ten o’clock in the morning, the most critical moment of the storm.
The passengers of this sailboat were rescued with a raft, helped by the crew and passers-by. | P. MARTÍNEZ
Immediately his fellow fishermen went out to look for him, as well as Salvamento Marítimo, which sent the Sasemar 102 plane from Valencia to search the area. Civil Protection, the Civil Guard, the ‘Guardamar Polimnia’ and the helicopter Helimer 221 also participated in the search.
After five o’clock in the afternoon he was located by one of the fishermen, floating in the water, holding on to a curté, one of the lids of the traditional llaüts. He was taken by Salvamento Marítimo to the beach des Arenals, from where an ambulance escorted by the Local Police and the Guardia Civil took him to the Hospital de Formentera, where he was under observation with a slight hypothermia but in good condition.
A multitude of family and friends of Xicu came to the health center to inquire about his health and in the corridors nobody talked about the weather and the word “miracle” was the most repeated.
For the full article, please visit Diario de Ibiza website here.