Madeira News Blog

April events ; Pasteis de nata recipe ; Glowing clean up report, & other news headlines

Der — Fri, 12 Mar 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Pete … Pitcher plant photo taken at Grandiffora garden centre.

Many thanks to Becky for this video and web snippets :

Pastéis de Nata recipe… well, you’re going to need something sweet after that fish…

A poem called ‘Madeira from the Sea’ by Sara Teasdale (1884-1933 Missouri, United States)

Pete sent in this video that he found on Don’s blog … thank you both.

Elaine (East) emailed : "Madeira Tourism March e-mail has finally arrived. Only 2 events in March and both are sports and held in Porto Santo, so mainly April activities". Many thanks Elaine.

Madeira Island Open, 8 – 11 April. The Madeira Islands will be hosting the Madeira Island Open 2010 golf tournament from 8 to 11 April, which is part of the main PGA European Tour and is set to take place for the second time at Porto Santo Golf Course. This tournament on the European calendar brings together some of the sport’s finest practitioners each year to contend for victory hole by hole. Under tour rules, the top seventy players after the first two days of play contest the last two days of the tournament. The conditions at Porto Santo Golf Course have never been better, which will certainly contribute towards the success of this event. Golf brochures on the WEBSITE

International Film Festival, 10 – 17 April. This year the Madeira Island’s 5th International Film Festival will include debates, street entertainment, guided tours and parties at night. The event is supported by the Regional Secretariat of Tourism and Transport / Official Tourism Board and will form part of the Annual Calendar of Tourist Entertainment. The film festival is an annual event, highlighting the art of cinema on the Madeira Islands. The programme revolves around an international short and feature film competition, all showing for the first time in Portugal and presided over by an international jury. Those responsible for the films will be there to present their work and take part in this celebration of cinema. The programme will also feature the Panorama informative section, a reflection of current world cinema; a retrospective dedicated to a filmmaker or a country; the "AnimArte" section especially for younger viewers, and various tributes. The presence of celebrities from the world of cinema adds credibility to the festival and increases the international profile of the event. This year the Career Award will be dedicated to the actress Geraldine Chaplin, daughter of one of the greatest figures in the history of cinema and granddaughter of the playwright Eugene O’Neill, as well as the actor Michael York, who shot to fame after appearing with Liza Minelli in the film Cabaret. Information on the official film festival WEBSITE

Flower Festival, 15 – 18 April. Celebrating spring and the wealth of flora it brings us every year, the city of Funchal is once again the stage for this sumptuous spectacle that will please both the eyes and nose. The theme for this year’s Flower Festival, set to take place between 15 and 18 April, is "Earth", tying in with the celebrations for the International Year of Biodiversity. The festivities begin on Thursday 15 April with the opening of the Flower Market in the Central Square of Avenida Arriaga, the Flower Exhibition at Largo da Restauração and the construction of delicate floral carpets along the main streets of Funchal. On Saturday morning, thousands of youngsters will take part in the Children’s Parade, each carrying a flower to place in a mural known as the "Wall of Hope", located in Praça do Município. Doves will be released to mark the end of the wall’s construction and there will also be a show for the children. Sunday brings another dazzling event: the Grand Flower Parade. Hundreds of flower-themed floats and characters will make their way through the city in lavish style to the sound of music in keeping with the Festival, displaying arrangements of many different species of flower typical to the island and leaving soft and ephemeral perfumes in their wake. Program 2010

New Air Links. The Madeira Archipelago will be serviced by new air links this year from various European cities, breathing extra life into the tourism sector and improving air accessibility to this destination. In mid February, the tour operator Atlantic Holidays announced a charter service between London and Porto Santo that will operate during two different periods: from 31 May to 19 July and from 6 September to 25 October. This will be the second time that this operator establishes a direct charter link from the United Kingdom to Porto Santo. Similarly, on 21 February Finnish operators began five new charter flights between Finland and the Autonomous Region of Madeira. The English airline Jet2.com has announced a new direct connection every Monday between Manchester and Madeira, beginning 3 May. The establishment of this connection by the British company is a consequence of the increased demand for the Madeira Islands in this market.

Many thanks also to Elaine (East) for these web snippets :

By a Holistic Psychologist/Health Therapist (?) and Der’s favourite ‘job’, Life Coach. "Madeira clean up puts the world to shame! Ladies and Gentleman, if I ever had any doubts that I was living in the wrong place, let me tell you that over the last week and a half those doubts have been completely erased. Madeira may be a small island but heck, when it comes to getting its ass into gear, (excuse the expression) by God, it surely shifts it … " MORE

Will she be back? "Madeira floods. The news from Madeira lately has been shocking, but maybe not so surprising. Given the way the island was deforested shortly after it was discovered, the Maderenese have been paying for it ever since. Friable volcanic rock and steep unstable slopes in a semi-tropical oceanic position, flash floods like this appear to be a seasonal occurrence, although in most years these floods, although devastating, are fairly localised and small scale in their effects. I saw many landslips whilst walking on the Levadas last November, and they were all being fixed by the resident workforce the Levaredos within hours of being reported. This time it is’nt going to be so easy to sort things out …" SOMETHING FAMILIAR THERE? Also sent in by Becky, thanks anyway.

Many thanks to Anna for writing in yesterday … (for tomorrow, please read Friday (today)).

"RTP Madeira had an interview with Feliz which was broadcast last night (Wednesday), and probably shown again this morning. Looks like he was wearing his Nike trainers! It really brings home how devastating the floods were when you focus on one particular case. He has gone back to school/college where it appears he is taking a multimedia course, Good luck to him. They flashed up bank details for donations.

My kids are doing a sponsored walk tomorrow (FRIDAY) with their school, walking round Santa Catarina park, all money going to the flood fund. People outside of Madeira can donate as a webpage has been set up on Justgiving.com there is a video and a short piece explaining what happened in Madeira and what the school is planning to do. I know there are rules on your blog (and rightly so) re websites but if you can post the weblink there may be some people who read the blog who may wish to donate something. So far donations have come from Europe, Caribbean, Russia and South Africa If you want to take a look and see if you are happy to put it on your site here is the link. Thanks LINK

It takes a little time and obviously easier to just buy but I wonder if anyone is interested in making their own bolo do caco? we found a recipe on line and tried it out and it works! we think the recipe needs a little fine tuning but it is fun to do and great for kids to "help" with! will send recipe". Many thanks Anna … does it contain sweet potato, as I don’t think I have ever actually tried the genuine version, and not even seen it on sale anywhere. Der

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

DIÁRIO 11/03/2010

MADEIRA

Estradas da Madeira accused of destroying a vineyard. A farmer complained that the company Estradas da Madeira and the rocheiros have thrown rocks onto his portion of 3,000 square metres of grapevines used in the manufacture of verdelho wines. The damage has lost two years of work and caused heavy financial losses. 3,000 Euros spent on this community project have been lost. Several landslides hit the access road to Arco de São Jorge on February 20th. Witnesses claim the cleaning machines are responsible for the rocks on his land. The Secretariat of the Environment has advised him to make a formal complaint at the police station. Estradas da Madeira said human lives come first and cleaning was a necessity, but they will investigate when they have details of the claim.

Marote denies favours to the Union and his son. In the continuation of the Marote Case in court, Rui Marote, a former vice-president of Funchal Council, said he did not abuse his position to promote Clube de Futebol União (CFU) or the company ‘Placar Vertical’ – of which his son is a partner. In 2002, Rui Marote was responsible for sport and finances. He decided, without consulting any other councillors, to spend 101.962.09 Euros to pay for sports equipment for the Union and lesser amounts went to the Club Sport Marítimo and the Associação de Futebol da Madeira. Without public tender, (illegal), equipment was purchased from ‘Placar Vertical’ at a cost of 24,036.07 Euros but the council was billed for 101,962.09 Euros, through 51 separate invoices. The equipment never entered the warehouse or supply division of the council. His defence was that the purchase of the equipment was the result of a meeting between three leaders of the Union and his son. The equipment was justified as it benefited the EU, other clubs like Nacional and Marítimo, and the policy of promoting sport was an electoral promise. The judge questioned whether support for sport should have been a priority at a time when the council was technically bankrupt. Marote said he had no knowledge that ‘Placar Vertical’ was involved until later on, and had never suggested they should be a supplier to the council.

One week, two large landslides. Jardineiros and Pauleiros are angry that they do not know what to do to gain the attention of the ‘deaf ears’ of the government. This was until the Mayor of Calheta suggested in an interview for TSF-Madeira, that the construction of a tunnel would provide an alternative access route to Jardim do Mar. Residents have petitioned for a more secure access to Jardim do Mar and Paul do Mar but without any results. Within the last week there have been two large rockfalls onto the present road and the last one occurred around 00.45 this morning, near the exit of the tunnel that links Paul do Mar. It blocked the road, preventing children from attending schools at Calheta. There is a history of landslides, especially after heavy rainfall giving rise to new water channels in the escarpment. An option for the residents is to use the route Paul do Mar/Fajã da Ovelha.

Macau sends aid to Madeira. 30,000 Euros donated to the Santa Casa da Misericórdia do Funchal (charity). This has been deposited in the fund created by the União das Misericórdias Portuguesas (UMP).

Analysis proves water quality. In 15 different areas of Funchal, samples of drinking water have been sent for microbiological analysis to ensure that the water is fit for consumption. IASAÚDE – part of the health service – published the results yesterday afternoon on their website, certifying that the water can be safely consumed. Dozens of people have used the emergency service of the hospital with gastrointestinal complaints, such as vomiting and diarrhoea, but these are not related to the recent storm affecting the water supply network. A viral infection is responsible, often occurring at this time of year, and is currently affecting other countries such as England and Sweden. The President of IASAÚDE said it is possible that some of the viral gastroenteritis diagnosed in the region could have been caused by viruses ‘imported’ by visitors.

Survivor of Pomar da Rocha has his own solidarity fund. José Feliz Abreu is the only survivor of a family of eight, victims of landslides in Pomar da Rocha in Ribeira Brava, during the storm of February 20th. He is 19 years old and after two weeks in hospital, he has now returned to Ribeira Brava. He has had some fingers of his right hand amputated, hampering his return to work at a petrol filling station and restaurant. The local school and friends have started a fund to help him start a new life. Contributions to: BANIF, NIB 0038 0000 3867502177117. — Alternatively, contribute to Der’s fund for him. No please, if you can, send any help direct to Feliz. Thanks Der

LATEST NEWS

Opposition wanted the suspension of the work at Barreiros. The opposition parties wanted the immediate suspension of work on the Estádio dos Barreiros and instead, the 31 million Euros should go towards the recovery of Madeira. At issue was the discussion of a protest vote by the BE against money being wasted on a football stadium. All opposition parties supported the vote although some parties saw the necessity of a new stadium for Marítimo. The PSD rejected the vote, arguing that it was not a capital expenditure of 31 million Euros, but an endorsement for 15 years. They also argued that it will create jobs and generate tax revenue.

European Parliament adopts resolution on disaster. Joint Committee to be established. 5% repayment of IRS to councils. Members of the European Parliament approved a resolution on the effects of the storm of February 20th, expressing the need for assistance to the region for economic and social development. The voting was 474 in favour, 7 against and 50 abstentions. All Portuguese MEPs supported the document. The resolution calls for the mobilization of the Solidarity Fund and a review of regional programs funded by the EU. The document called for the rapid deployment of the maximum amount from the Solidarity Fund. José Sócrates has signed the order creating a Joint Committee to determine the damage and cost of the reconstruction of Madeira. After the survey, the Special Law of Finances for Autonomous Regions will be created for the next three years. The Government wants to present in April to the national parliament the amount of solidarity money the State wants to transfer to Madeira. The Joint Committee’s work is essential as regards the engagement of external aid, such as the EU Solidarity Fund. Parliament has approved the proposal to re-enter in the State Budget the transfer of 5% of IRS revenue to the councils of Madeira and the Azores, and payment of arrears. Votes in favour by the PSD, PCP, BE, CDS-PP and socialist deputies. Teixeira dos Santos (Minister of Finance) was against this proposal as the councils on the Continent automatically receive 5% of IRS revenue, so the autonomous regions would get 100% of revenue and the State only receives 95%. Arrears amount to 5,671,839 Euros for the Azores and 8,085,960 Euros for Madeira.

Travel Agents complain of serious consequences of the strike by pilots. The six day strike by the Union of Civil Aviation Pilots is from the 26 – 31 March. According to the Portuguese Association of Travel Agents, this will cause serious problems for tourists that travel for the Easter holiday. It will affect scheduled flights, including those to Madeira. Alternatively, the Union of Civil Aviation Pilots says the strike by TAP pilots will not affect Madeira, as the operation to and from Madeira will be maintained, since it is considered urgent that the normal activity of tourism returns after the effects of February 20th.

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

Jardim goes to the convention but doesn’t commit himself – Critic of the situation of the three candidates and then attempting to launch Marcelo, the leader of the Social Democrat Party of Madeira delays his declaration of support to the national party leadership. President Jardim seems to be on the side of Paulo Rangel in the leadership race of the PSD, but the Europe MP will have to wait and see if Jardim publically declares himself in that direction. Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa is the ideal candidate for the leader of Madeira, but he will not get the vote of Jardim because he is a ‘no hoper’.

Music festivals on the account of Europe – DRAC without funds for the major annual events. The Regional Directorate of Cultural Affairs (DRAC) must now rely on a share of European funds for organizing its annual cultural festivals, under the program INTERVENE +. The Music Festival of Madeira, the Festival of Traditional Music ‘Atlantic Roots’, the Regional Meeting of the Philharmonic Bands in Ribeira Brava, and a new Organ Festival to be held in October should all proceed with 80% of the funding provided through Europe.

Today’s main news headline : Regional Government stopping its support for the cost of insularity – Madeiran civil service workers receive this month the final subsidy of 2%. Starting next year, the value will be fixed according to the rate of inflation, that doesn’t guarantee the current insularity subsidy.

Families of the eight disappeared give up hope – Twenty days after the tragedy, the families cannot even mourn for those who were taken by the storm. "Without face, without trace", 20 days on there are still 8 missing people from Funchal, Ribeira Brava, and Curral das Freiras. These are families who can not mourn for their loved ones that have not appeared. They do not want a ‘presumed death’ to prevail over the right to a dignified funeral.

Machico dumps inerts [flood deposits] on the beach at São Roque.

Durão Barroso visits Madeira to "express solidarity" and ensure support – The President of the European Commission travels this morning to the locations most affected by the storm.

The main sports / football headline today : Draws in the Europa League generate disappointment in the Luz [Benfica camp] and hope for Alvalade [Sporting camp] – Marseilles tied with Benfica right at the end, Sporting held Athletic Madrid with a player less for an hour.

Cristiano Ronaldo may arrive today for the funeral of his cousin.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

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Special Fishy feature ; Optimism for Portugal’s new budget ; Blue Flag applications caution

Der — Thu, 11 Mar 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Pete … Fish Market Funchal

Many thanks to Elaine (East) for this web snippet :

The next few decades? 10 Species We’ve Lost Forever in Past Few Decades. 4. Madeiran Large White (2007) HERE

Many thanks to Becky for this video and two web snippets :

If my life took an eventful turn and I found myself requesting my last meal, it would probably be Filete de Espada com banana. Here’s a recipe to try next time I’m in Funchal … or maybe I’ll just save the mess in the kitchen and head to a restaurant instead …

"There is a large brewery on the island, Coral, that makes some very acceptable beer. They brew a golden lager and a tonic (a sort of porter or stout) plus some light and low alcohol beers as well. The taste of both their lager and tonic are infinitely much more pleasing that mainland beers like Sagres and the insipid Super Bock – which is neither super or bock." BEERBLOG – WHAT A GREAT IDEA!

"It (therefore) continues to be the perfect place for a rejuvenating getaway right now, with wonderful hotels offering breathtaking views and special pampering services. Here are a few of the best." HERE

Paul very kindly sent these two articles in :

No singing and dancing orchids! Are you a flower lover? Have you explored the magical world of orchids in Madeira?

Jardim Orquídea. “Pregetter`s Orchid Garden is dedicated to all those who love nature and plants, so don’t expect to find just another garden. Neither will you find “tourist attractions” such as singing and dancing orchids. On the contrary, we devote our efforts to presenting everything in surroundings which are as natural as possible.

Jardim Orquídea is a genuine exhibition. We have built a miniature forest where you will have the opportunity to admire a wide variety of orchids, both in their original form and hybrids, as well as other tropical plants.

We have also built up a symbiosis of plants, birds and fish in the tropical biotope. The Garden’s small coffee shop on the terrace has breathtaking views over Funchal and serves Austrian and Madeira specialities.

The firm was founded in Austria during the time of the Imperial monarchy and since then four generations of the family have been dedicated to the research and development of new species of a wide variety of plants.

The Garden claims that visitors will find plants from every continent and be able to see blossoming plants throughout the year. And add that anyone who tells you that there are no plants in bloom at this time of year or that the Garden is closed to the public, is simply not familiar with Jardim Orquídea.

Great SLIDESHOW of the ‘Jardim Orquídea’ Rua Pita da Silva 37, Funchal, next to the Jardim Botanico. Jardim Orquidea website homepage

Madeira Top 10 for family activity holidays! Madeira is in the Top 10 pick of ‘the Guardian’ Newspaper’s for new family activity holidays in Europe whether it’s cooking, caving, dolphin-watching or riding donkeys!

Nicola Iseard writes there are plenty of opportunities for family adventure holidays in Europe and “wildlife lovers may be interested in travelling to Madeira in Portugal for a spot of dolphin and whale-watching. "You’ll also get a chance to spot some of Madeira’s sea birds"

Stunning walking routes

Photo from official tourism website

Visitors to the region can take advantage of the mountainous terrain by following stunning walking routes at Pousada Dos Vinhaticos, Quinta do Monte or Quinta do Estreito.

Link to The UK Guardian article

Also from Paul …

Optimism on Portugal’s austerity budget: “the Socialist government has cut a huge budget deficit before, when it soared beyond the EU limit in 2005”

“Trade union leaders in Portugal have called for a nationwide protest in May, following what they say was a successful strike on Thursday by public sector workers over pay cuts.

But politicians have vowed to rein in spending lest the country default on its debt, says the BBC’s Sarah Rainsford in Lisbon”.

Photo : Prime Minister Jose Socrates has some unpleasant medicine to administer : Link to BBC Article

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

DIÁRIO 10/03/2010

FRONT PAGE NEWS

ON Fusion Art by Porto Bay, 16 – 18 July. The third edition in the Old Zone of Funchal arrives earlier this year, normally held in September. The exhibitions bring together painting, photography, craft shows, multimedia design, fashion, dance, street theatre and other forms of expression. Events are held at: Largo do Corpo Santo, Rua de Santa Maria, Jardim do Almirante Reis and the Hotel Porto Santa Maria. The Porto Bay Group’s "duty" is to boost private enterprise in Funchal and accept its share of social and cultural responsibility. ON in the name is from the fusion of Old and New and means to activate, connect and energize. The revival and revitalization of the historic area is in mind during the three days of intense activities, including live performances. ON is a biennial event and the works of art are auctioned at a formal dinner for not-for-profit institutions. The first two events in 2006 and 2008 raised a total of 65,000 Euros for social services institutions, particularly the Associação de Paralisia Cerebral da Madeira (Association for Cerebral Palsy) and the Centro de Acolhimento de São Tiago (Shelter). Money raised this year is for the Associação dos Amigos da Arte Inclusiva – Dançando com a Diferença (Association of the Friends of Inclusive Arts – Dancing with a Difference) and the Associação de Desenvolvimento Comunitário do Funchal (Community Development Association).

Marina do Lugar de Baixo will get new protection. Technicians and government officials consider the best solution for the stones and other inert materials removed from the stream between Serra de Água and Ribeira Brava, and the stream at Tabua, is to use them to protect the marina. A Dutch study had suggested a stone breakwater with a width of 30/50 metres, 400 metres long and parallel to the quays, to protect the marina. The solution did not progress any further as it required 450,000 cubic metres of stone, at a cost of 40 million Euros. This is more than the investment made for the construction of the marina. The authorities at an emergency meeting were not all in agreement, although it resolves several problems in one foul swoop. The fact that it creates hundreds of jobs is enough to persuade the initially resistant mayor. Santos Costa ensures this solution is of no additional cost to the construction firm ‘Ponta Oeste’, and the Region will not have to take out a 40 million Euros bank loan. It is still not known if the stones should be deposited directly into the sea or stored on land for later use. Builders would prefer the stones to be used in construction work in the future. Technicians responsible for the study are trying to persuade the Regional Government that it would be quicker and cheaper to deposit directly into the sea. If the protection of the marina is guaranteed, the hotel and accommodation project of the Pestana Group will be one step closer. The amount of stones and inerts removed from the streams of Ribeira Brava and Tabua exceeds the amount removed from all three streams in Funchal. There is an estimated 400,000 cubic metres or 26,000 lorry loads.

MADEIRA

Region submitting 16 applications for the Blue Flag. The Blue Flag status indicates that the beach meets a set of criteria for the natural environment and the safety and comfort of users. Last year, a record of 20 beaches were entered for the Blue Flag. In Funchal Municipality, Praias Nova and Areeiro (near to Praia Formosa) will not be entered this year because of the work at the promenade. The application for the Complexo Balnear do Lido has been withdrawn after recent storm damage. The beach at São Roque in Machico had the Blue Flag status suspended last year and an application was not submitted this year. None of the beaches in the Municipality of Ponta do Sol have been entered as the results of tests on the bathing water quality, leading to the withdrawal of the award in 2008. Also in 2008, the beach at Calheta had poor quality water and for the same reason, an application cannot be submitted this year. Of the 16 candidates submitted this year, 15 hoisted the Blue Flag last year. This year is the first time the Praia da Calheta in Porto Santo has been an applicant, bringing the number of possible flags on Porto Santo to three; the other two beaches at Fontinha and Ribeiro Salgado. In Madeira, the applicants are: Funchal – balneares da Barreirinha, Ponta Gorda/Poças do Governador, Doca do Cavacas/Poças do Gomes, Clube Naval do Funchal and Praia Formosa; Santa Cruz – Palmeiras, Roca Mar, Galo Mar and Garajau; São Vicente – praia da Ponta Delgada, and local beaches at Porto Moniz and Ribeira Brava. The authorities hope the beach and complex at Ribeira Brava will be fit with everything working by the start of the season (June 1). The National Blue Flag Commission starts to assess candidates from Friday 12th March and the results will be announced in May. — Have I lost a beach, as I count only 15 here? Even worse Elaine, in a press announcement by the president of Ribeira Brava, says that with so much muck and so little time it is very unlikely that an application will be made, although he says that he thinks the water quality will be good enough regardless. Better not to apply than be refused.Oh bugger I just read the next article! Der

Candidature of Ribeira Brava might be suspended. Following on from the last item, the Mayor of Ribeira Brava thinks the application for the beach at Ribeira Brava to gain Blue Flag status should be withdrawn. The council has not discussed the suspension. He thinks this precaution is needed as there is a lot of work to be done, particularly in Tabua and Serra de Água. During the flooding on February 20th, the entire sea front and the basin inside the breakwater were completely littered with debris. The area surrounding the beach is still strewn with waste despite the removal of a large amount of material. Some of the mud removed during the clean-up was discharged directly into the sea near the beach front and into the river, whose flow has taken it to the shore. The mayor, Ismael Fernandes, believes the quality of sea water will be good during the summer season even if the Blue Flag is not raised.

Marginal serves as a dump for rubble. The coastal road between Ribeira Brava and Tabua is used for storing the debris removed after the flood of February 20th. Since last week, lorry loads of inerts mixed with rubbish, washed ashore during the flooding, have been deposited in the section beneath the parish cemetery. The Chairman of the Council assures that the situation is temporary, allowing a quick recovery back to normal life and an attractive county. The mayor is convinced there is no risk to Public Health as the area is safe and away from the populated area.

Landslide in marginal. Part of the coastal road connecting Ribeira Brava and Tabua has been impassable since May 2007, after a landslide. The Regional Laboratory of Civil Engineering predicted the area was in imminent danger of further landslides. The road remained closed and the mayor declared there were safer alternatives, particularly through the tunnel. During the recent storm, a large amount of earth and stones falling onto the road have ruled out the reopening of this section.

Lagoa do Lugar de Baixo should be fully restored within a month. This pond is a vital nesting site for sea birds in spring. The Regional Director of the Environment says the storm of 20th February destroyed this breeding ground, as the pond is now a "deposit" of gravel and debris. The clean up will start immediately but some problems will need to be solved, as there are many tons of debris. The material will be screened for either usability or transport to secure sites. Just a large duck pond is it not? Der

5,000 pounds in solidarity from London. A solidarity dinner on Sunday night at Brixton Recreation Centre raised 5,000 pounds for Madeira. The event was attended by both Madeirans and British. 500 tickets at 10 pounds a head were sold within two weeks. The Ambassador of Portugal in London and his wife attended and he provided information on the situation of people in Madeira. Lambeth Life newspaper published a report of the storm with details of a solidarity bank account. The dinner was accompanied by two folk groups and a variety act.

JORNAL DA MADEIRA

REGIONAL

Funchal has relocated 168 people. Seven council teams are surveying 804 homes hit by the bad weather. 168 people belonging to 45 families have been rehoused. 254 of these 804 cases emerged after March 1st. This is related to the fact that some people were staying with family and friends, and there have been problems identified by other organizations that have now been relayed to the council. The teams will distinguish the situations which require an urgent solution and detect any opportunism. Some residents are resistant to returning as they are still traumatized and fearful of further landslides.

Dolce Vita reopens Friday. The Dolce Vita mall reopens this Friday, 12th March. It is a partial reopening and at present, there are no more details. It won’t include Pingo Doce for sure. Der

Health Centre of Gaula completed this year. The parliamentary group of the PSD visited the expansion and improvement of the Health Centre of Gaula, in the municipality of Santa Cruz. This is an investment of 600,000 Euros. There are 4,000 inhabitants in Gaula, of which 3,700 are voters. There has been a considerable increase in the local population in recent years, requiring a more than doubling of the existing facilities. Currently, the health service is working temporarily in former offices of the parish council.

ECONOMY

The Port of Funchal receives more passengers. The Port of Funchal received 6.5% more passengers this January and February than in 2009. There were 41 calls with 81,709 passengers, of which 79,078 were in transit – the rest were embarking / disembarking. This was the same number of cruise ships as last year but they have more capacity. This is despite cancellations in February due to the floods. — From March 8th Diário, my translation of their article on port movements did not make sense – not unusual with their difficult statistics. I understood they stated a 3.1% decrease in cruise ship passengers since 2009. Don’t worry Elaine, there were two conflicting articles just yesterday, and I only scanned the newspaper. Der

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

The national Socialist Party rediscover the charms of Madeira – Jorge Lacão and Francisco Assis are the socialists that come next. They come to the daily parliamentary work. Wow … gripping headline stuff to get started with! Couldn’t possibly be a jolly I suppose?

Solidarity shows (concert) continue – UHF play today in Coimbra in an event for Madeira. Can’t say I have heard of them, but they look like a bunch of rockers from the photo. Thanks lads!

Today’s main news headline : University has means to forecast the weather – Researcher at the University of Madeira defends the cross-over [overlap?] of the various meteorological forecasts and the coordination between several entities as a way of predicting catastrophes.

Landslides generate outrage and fear in Jardim do Mar.

Tunnel between Meia Légua and Serra de Água cannot proceed sooner because it is "expensive".

Road cleaning finishes off the agricultural exploration [farm?] in Arco de São Jorge.

Accounts of the Câmara without comment from the TC [Auditors]. The 2008 accounts of Funchal Council passed the ‘court of auditors’ scrutiny without a single criticism. Not a single irregularity, financial or in process. A rare event indeed apparently, sufficient to make the front page of Madeira’s top independent newspaper. I should be patting Miguel Albuquerque, president of the Câmara, on the back, with my hearty congratulations, but too many other unexplainable thoughts are swimming around my head preventing my hands coming out of my pockets.

TAP pilots strike doesn’t hit Madeira – Operation to and from Madeira keeps going during the six days of labour withdrawal. The announcement was made by the pilots union SPAC, saying that Madeira would be excluded from the industrial action scheduled between 26th and 31st of March. Shrewd move there Srs. TAP pilots, ‘cos solidarity for Madeira is currently running much much stronger than solidarity for TAPs undernourished pilots.

The main sports / football headline today : Real Madrid is out of the Champions league – Cristiano Ronaldo scored but doesn’t avoid the elimination against Lyon.

20 clubs contest the billiards [pool] association.

Bernardo Sousa comes to the rally on Porto Santo.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and other material.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Indolents of Santa Cruz ; PIGS of Europe – have your say ; ITN footage from 1964

Der — Wed, 10 Mar 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Rita … Topiary display at Palheiro Gardens

Many thanks to Elaine (East) for this web snippet :

Did they have camels here? This is totally worth spending all of Saturday working, and still working at half-past midnight: I’m transcribing the 1825 journal of someone sailing from Scotland to Australia in 1825. The journey takes about four months. It is fascinating and awesome, and at one point there are sharks.

- Santa Cruz, Madeira, in the mid-1820s:
"The natives of Santa Cruz are very indolent, & Greedy as soon as we went on shore they ran after us begging. The dress of the women is very peculiar; they have a blanket that covers the head & hangs down their back & on their head over the blanket is a hat, the same hat as is worn by the men. Camels are very common there instead of draught horses, they carry very heavily burdens on their back; the ass also in Santa Cruz is very plenty & a small kind of horse, there are no Carts there. Oxen are also in great abundance & instead of dragging by the neck they drag by the horns a sort of sledge without wheels, & upon this machine they drag their wine & water; the natives drive the horses & oxen into the sea & swim along with them to wash them." SOURCE

Many thanks to Becky for this video and snippet : Fado "A Júlia Florista" na Ilha da Madeira

Brilliant old ITN programme called ‘Roving Report’ presented by Sandy Gall in January 1964. "Report on the island of Madeira in the Atlantic Ocean which can only be reached by sea. However the sedate traditional way of life is likely to change as the airport under construction is nearly finished." Sadly, ITN archive won’t let you hear the audio of clips 1, 2 and 7 (of 8 clips in total) unless you pay a fee to licence it, but there’s enough here for a very worthwhile watch even if some of it is without sound. Fascinating to see how the island has changed in the last 46 years and strange to think of a time when there was no airport. HERE

"I noticed in today’s (Monday) blog there was a mention about a tsunami from a Canary Island. I was doing some studying the other day about the Lisbon Earth quake in 1755 and there is a small mention about how it affected Madeira as well as many other parts of the world. Thought the link here be of interest" … Pete LISBON EARTHQUAKE

‘PIGS’ – article adapted from BBC articles. Links below.

The BBC wants comments and information from people who live in these countries: Portugal, Ireland, Greece or Spain? “PIGS is a horrible acronym. But this is how the financial markets refer to the troubled and heavily-indebted countries of Europe – Portugal, Ireland, Greece and Spain.(Some analysts use PIIGS to include Italy – Europe’s longstanding biggest debtor.)” The BBC is after answers to these questions:

How bad is the economic situation in your country?

How has it affected you and your family?

What measures have you taken to cope with the economic crisis?

“Greece has dominated the concerns of investors since late last year, when concerns over whether it will be able to pay off the 300bn Euros ($419bn; £259bn) in government debt it currently owes. The euro has been battered over the past month as some even started to fear the break-up of the eurozone.Now the European Union has agreed a deal to rescue Greece – with perhaps other wrecked economies to be helped at a later date.”

Just how bad a situation are the PIGS in, and how does that compare with the UK for example?

GREECE – Economy, in European Union : Thirteenth-largest

Latest GDP figure: -0.3% (Third quarter of 2009) ; Gross debt in 2010, forecast : 125% of GDP ; Gross debt in 2007 : 94.5% of GDP ; Jobless rate : 9.7% ; Population : 11,260,402 Stocks performance in 2010 : -10.5% (to 11 February)

IRELAND – Economy, in European Union : Fifteenth-largest

Latest GDP figure: 0.3% (Third quarter of 2009) ; Gross debt in 2010, forecast : 82.9% of GDP ; Gross debt in 2007 : 25.4% of GDP ; Jobless rate : 13.3% ; Population : 4,450,014 Stocks performance in 2010 : -1.5% (to 11 February)

SPAIN – Economy, in European Union : Fifth-largest

Latest GDP figure : -0.1% (Fourth quarter of 2009) ; Gross debt in 2010, forecast : 66.3% of GDP ; Gross debt in 2007 : 36.2% of GDP ; Jobless rate : 19.5% ; Population : 45,828,172 ; Stocks performance in 2010 : -13% (to 11 February)

PORTUGAL – Economy, in European Union : Seventeenth-largest

Latest GDP figure: 0.9% (Third quarter of 2009) ; Gross debt in 2010, forecast : 84.6% of GDP ; Gross debt in 2007 : 63.6% of GDP ; Jobless rate : 10.4% ; Population : 10,627,250 ; Stocks performance in 2010 : -9.7% (to 11 February)

Portugal – with its high borrowing and sudden reversal in economic fortunes – has been lumped in the same category as its Mediterranean neighbours.

The country has vowed not to leave the eurozone, with its finance minister telling the BBC that it faced "an extraordinary and exceptional situation, due to a major financial and economic crisis without precedent in our recent history".

UNITED KINGDOM – Economy, in European Union : Third-largest

Latest GDP figure: 0.1% (Fourth quarter of 2009) ; Gross debt in 2010, forecast : 80.3% of GDP ; Gross debt in 2007 : 43.8% of GDP ; Jobless rate : 7.8% ; Population : 61,634,599 ; Stocks performance in 2010 : -4.2% (to 11 February)

Although the UK did officially come out of recession in the fourth quarter of 2009 – ending six consecutive quarters of economic decline – the growth was just 0.1%, much less than expected.

The UK government spent £85.5bn last year on bailing out the banks. Now, Chancellor Alistair Darling is predicting a record £178bn of borrowing in the current fiscal year.

With an election this year, Labour and the Conservatives have been sparring over the exact size of spending cuts and many economists have raised concerns that the UK could have its credit rating cut.”

Links: To send your experiences to the BBC click HERE SOURCE

Financial crisis: IMF boss says there’s no reason why the spillover to Portugal or to Spain will take place. "No one knows what’s going to happen tomorrow morning but there’s no reason why the spillover to Portugal or to Spain will take place"

Image: from wikimedia

"there’s no reason" to expect that Spain and Portugal would also need to call for external support, says IMF managing director Dominique Strauss-Kahn Link to BBC article

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

DIÁRIO 09/03/2010

FRONT PAGE NEWS

Available for all. "I am available at any hour and any moment, as I always have been and I always am wherever I go." That is the message of the rally driver Bernardo Sousa. Diário asked him if he would be associated with any tourism promotion campaign carried out by the Regional Government. He said that no one has contacted him but he would be willing, not only abroad but also in Portugal. Three days ago, he won the Rally Torrié and soon will be competing in countries where the residents choose to spend their vacations in Madeira. Bernardo is taking part in the World Rally and says Madeira could draw dividends form the media attention. He will be in France, Germany and England and the events will be covered by television, newspapers and the radio. Bernardo will be going next to Jordan in early April. The events are usually covered by 200 journalists and the organization has its own TV channel and radio and their website is visited by many millions of enthusiasts. The photo shows the Flag of Madeira raised on the podium when he was in first position in the Campeonato de Portugal de Ralis de 2010. It was placed on the roof of his Ford S2000, in solidarity with the victims of the storm.

"We make a point not to put debris into the sea." Funchal Council will transfer the storm debris from Praia Formosa to a licensed landfill at Carreiras. Costa Neves, the Councillor for the Environment, said they would not deposit the debris and sludge into the sea, learning from past mistakes. The material is being separated; metal is sent for recycling and the sludge, stones, sand and wood are sent to landfill. The Regional Government was considering dumping the deposits by the Avenida do Mar into the sea. A portion of the landfill is being buried as it contains food from the supermarket in Anadia and other organic substances, which are rotting and affect nearby hotels. The cars damaged by the flood are being sent for scrapping, either to the area previously used for this purpose or to land in Fundoa. The owners have to decide whether to send them for recycling, depending on their insurance. Yesterday, the Armas ferry brought to Funchal a machine to clean the sewerage network, which is full of rubble which has also damaged the pipe work. The machine has been rented for a week at a cost of 20,000 Euros, and can clear the debris, check the pipes for breaks and repair them. It will operate in the Avenida do Mar and Market areas, then go to the outer regions of Santo António, especially to clear the pumping station at Trapiche. It will also be used at the Estação de Tratamento de Águas Residuais do Funchal. The inventory of houses damaged in Santo António is still being finished but roof tiles are being sent to home owners. The council will also assist owners in rebuilding their homes where the land has been assessed to be safe from further landslides. Each case will be individually evaluated and the home owners will also have to financially contribute.

MADEIRA

Marote case opens with exchange of accusations. Two of four accused of embezzlement (the abuse of power and economic participation in business negotiations) were in court yesterday. The ex-vice-president of Funchal Council, Rui Marote, is one of those accused. The Public Ministry has scrutinized the process of providing cleaning supplies to Funchal Council and concluded there had been collusion to promote three companies that supply chemicals to the council. In court, there were the environmental engineer and former head of the Division of the council, and the technical engineer who was the Director of the Department of the Environment. The former head of the Division is accused of using council services to clean a house in Santo da Serra. He replied the work was out-of-hours, unpaid and council products were not used. The former Director of the Department of the Environment said it was standard practice for products to be directly purchased, with a ceiling of 2,500 Euros per requisition. The purchase of only three supplies passed this limit. A warehouse employee told the council there was over-consumption of products by the Division headed by the engineer. The defendant then blocked new acquisitions, so only external ordering was allowed. The stress involved caused his admittance to the Casa de Saúde São João de Deus.

South Africa in solidarity. Casa da Madeira de Joanesburgo, Club Sport Marítimo de Joanesburgo, Red Skins and Madeira Golfe have helped to collect 72,000 rands for Madeira. They used the African NGO (non-government organization) called ‘Gift of the Givers’, which has recently distributed more than 360 million rands in aid throughout 27 countries. In South Africa, it has 20 units which treat 40,000 patients each month. By Saturday, it had received 10 tons of clothing, food, bottled water, baby food, nappies, medicines and other products intended for Madeira. The organization was still busy helping Haiti when it received a phone call informing of what had happened in Madeira. After 48 hours of assessing the situation, the organization decided to appeal for help. The goods should be delivered within three weeks. The Casa Social da Madeira in Pretória has raised 125,000 rands.

Weather forecasting model not implemented for 7 years. The Centre for Geophysical Sciences in Lisbon University proposed to the Institute of Meteorology in 2003, a project for high resolution, more detailed forecasting of weather conditions in the Azores and Madeira, 48 hours in advance. The Institute of Meteorology agreed to participate but only the Azores progressed with the project; Madeira lacking partners. For the weather forecast for Madeira, the Institute uses a European model, which is the best global model but it does not have enough spatial resolution to represent the topography of Madeira sufficiently. To compensate for the island’s physical characteristics, additional regional data is collected from remote radars and satellites. The installation of the high resolution model would cost no more than 100,000 Euros. The diagram shows the model used by the Centre for Geophysics in Lisbon to allow more detailed forecasts, thanks to high resolution orographics (how hills and mountains affect the weather – BBC website).

Cruelty to animals not reported. Few cases of animal cruelty actually reach the authorities. Complaints to the police about mistreatment and neglect are rarely followed up, as it is not practical. Instead of the general public going directly to SPAD (Society for the Protection of Domestic Animals), they only receive complaints through the Regional Directorate of Veterinary Medicine, PSP or GNR. The complaints are not accompanied by documented evidence, such as testimonies, videos or photos, so they cannot prosecute. People are also afraid of complaining because of fear of reprisals. Fines for violence to animals range from 500 Euros to 3,740 Euros or up to 44,890 Euros if the perpetrator is a legal entity (company or institution). Neglect is a punishable crime, alongside irresponsible ownership of dangerous or potentially dangerous animals. Animals which are involved can be seized, with the intention of adoption.

LATEST NEWS

Flower Festival "is already sold out". The Regional Secretary for Tourism said that hotels are largely full, a "good omen" for the tourism industry after the storm of February 20th. Three and four star hotels are almost all fully booked and five star hotels are going that way. But the President of Porto Bay Group, António Trindade, cautions this optimism, saying that high occupation rates are not a reality. If there is too much optimism it could generate a disincentive for agencies to sell Madeira. He said the market is reacting positively to the events of February 20th but there are still many beds to fill.

Museum of Sugar will only reopen within a year. The Museu do Açúcar or "Cidade do Açúcar" in Praça Colombo, one of the most emblematic and important museums in Funchal, requires 300,000 – 400,000 Euros of repair work after the flood of February 20th. DRAC is still at the stage of assessing and costing the damage. The building was damaged and 30% of the exhibits are missing, mainly small items. The only other museum to be affected is the privately owned religious museum, Mary Jane Wilson in Rua do Carmo. Water entered through the front door of the Museu do Açúcar and the collection in the basement was completely flooded. Members of the public and the Instituto dos Museus e da Conservação have volunteered to restore damaged items. It could have been worse because many of the most valuable items are in the Palácio da Ajuda in Lisbon for the exhibition, ‘Obras de Referência dos Museus da Madeira – 500 Anos de História de um Arquipélago’. This exhibition of 300 museum pieces from Madeira, representing 500 years of an archipelago, should have ended on 28th February but is extended to April 6th and the extra ticket returns will go to Madeira.

Caritas has not suspended the request for food aid. Contrary to previous reports, please deliver donations to the charity’s warehouse in Rua do Brasil nºs 76 e 79, not military units. It still requires: food, toiletries, household linen (bedding, towels etc.), crockery, furniture, cooking equipment (cutlery, pans, plates etc.) and help with transporting donations throughout the region.

Quote of the day.

Rui Caetano, PS councillor in Funchal Council. He was to make a complaint against the Regional Government but has decided not to, because of the political partnership with the State after the floods of February 20th. He said, "In the meantime, much water has passed under and over the bridge."

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

‘ON’ animates the ‘Old Zone’ in July. ON Fusion Art by Porto Bay is from 16th to 18th July, in it’s 3rd edition, with the promise to fill the old zone of Funchal with art. Paintings, photography, crafts, design and multimedia, fashion, dance, street theatre, and more, will be arranged in Largo do Corpo Santo, Rua de Santa Maria, Jardim do Almirante Reis and the Hotel Porto Santa Maria.

Health Service owes €50 million – The pharmaceutical industry and the suppliers of medical equipment equipment demand the defaulted payments.

Today’s main news headline : Support for new cars – the state and Madeira promise help to those that lost their cars in the latest storm : 4 thousand Euros for the scrapping, and access to a line of credit, to a global value of €10 million. Must be great news for car owners, especially those who didn’t have the right insurance to cover their losses, and yet another show of cooperation between the two levels of government. The government of Portugal having just agreed a very tight budget, with plenty of cuts and restrictions, must be living a nightmare with what is happening on Madeira and the eventual cost, but must flow with the tide of solidarity that has swept the country,. Let’s be honest here … they are damned if they do, and damned if they don’t.

Social Security boosts grants for the funerals of minors.

Suspicions oblige searches in Ribeira Brava and Curral das Freiras.

"It was promised that there will be special solutions for special situations". The Prime Minister assured Ventura Garcês, who will "attend to the situation in the Region". The Government of the Republic signed the order on Wednesday to form the Joint Committee for surveying the damage caused by the storm.

Inert materials [sand, stone, etc.] from the storm help out in the marina of Lugar de Baixo. €40 million would be needed, a sum that the government will now save, putting to use the materials brought down by the water torrents. The problem of Lugar de Baixo marina may finally be resolved, as some creative thinking from the authorities and technical bods came up with the plan to ~~dump~~ deposit the sand, dirt, stones, and garbage accumulated from Serra d’Água through to Ribeira Brava, and also Tabua river, to form part of a frontal protection. Two problems solved in one go, what great news … or is it?

Ministry of Defence will invest in military communications in Madeira – The current system revealed flaws during the storms on 20 February. Augusto Santos Silva guarantees that the system will be corrected.

The main sports headline today : Parents disgrace youth andebol [handball]. Apparently at a game in Funchal on Sunday, the kids did OK, ending up with a drawn match, but some of the parents disgraced themselves with verbal abuse and threatening behaviour to opposition players and supporters (parents). I wonder why parents think it acceptable to behave so badly? Nothing to do with professional footballers surely, hefty pay cheques, spoiled brats, get away with murder. Of course there are some good and honest ones as well …

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and other material.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Another scare in Jardim do Mar ; Calheta guide ; Lomelino Silva, the Portuguese Caruso

Der — Tue, 09 Mar 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Tom … "Magnolias are blooming on Monte means Spring is in the air".

Many thanks to Elaine (East) for these web snippets / videos :

Cruising the Mediterranean (1933). 38 minutes in total, the first 8 minutes are relevant to Madeira. Keywords: S.S. Columbus, boys diving for coins, oxen drawn sleds, digging paving stones for street, laying stones, pounding, Madeira wine barrel on sled, man herding pigs in street, carrying wicker chairs, fish market, eels (Espada), removing skin on rough stone, live turtle (sold for food), flower seller, embroidery, carrying sled up stairs, sleds career down stone mountain road. HERE

Madeira. Description of the island in the 1920s. 4 minutes long silent clip. Keywords: Ox drawn sleds used for tourists, man passes a greased rag under runners, tourists ride in wicker basket sleds down stone path from Terreira da Luta. Two women sit on ground spinning yarn. Sled goes down stone path while two women wash clothes in gutter, old woman with crutch sits in chair next to young woman doing embroidery, two old men (twins?) with beards wearing pointed knitted hats sit on bench, young man making wicker chair. HERE

Many thanks to Becky for this video :

Lomelino Silva, (1892-1967) born in Funchal in Rua das Maravilhas, in the Parish of São Pedro on the 26th December 1892 on the Portuguese island of Madeira. He is known as the Portuguese Caruso. His singing talent was discovered when he was a youth whilst performing in the Teatro Municipal Baltazar Dias in Funchal.

And to Elaine out West, for this news article from yesterday’s Diário de Notícias :

Another scare in Jardim do Mar. New rockfall on the road connecting to Estreito da Calheta. More stones have fallen on the link road between Estreito da Calheta and Jardim do Mar. After a week with traffic stopped due to the storm that devastated this area, yesterday a further rockfall fell on this part of the road and only by chance were a family spared who were travelling on it. Given the pile of stones on the road, some of considerable size, the driver of the car was forced to brake in order to avoid the large covering of rocks. His tyre marks were visible on the asphalt.

In recent days the sun has returned. Now, the population of Jardim do Mar and Paul do Mar fear that the heat will open new cracks in some parts of the escarpment. The DIÁRIO knows that the link road to Jardim do Mar is on file as part of the survey that the Department of Infrastructure is conducting regarding the damage caused by the storm on 20 February.

The perils of leaving Calheta by boat before ‘rampas’ slipways or marinas were constructed

Know Calheta, Madeira History. Calheta, now with a population of 12,000 was one of the first areas in Madeira to be farmed. Its capital Calheta Town is about 31 kilometres from Funchal about 40-45 minutes drive time. As the Tourism website puts it “The municipality was once linked to the primary sector, and “industry” used to be important in the region.” There were once as many as eight sugar cane processing factories, though only one of them ‘Engenhos da Calheta’ is still operating today. With its museum with guided tours, shop and café its well worth a visit. Its about half-way up the hill from the Marina: WEBSITE

Photo : Engenhos da Calheta.

Calheta’s ocean front has been refurbished with the construction of a marina with white sand beaches next to it surrounded by spacious gardens.

The Parishes of Paul do Mar and Jardim do Mar. Two of its parishes, Paul do Mar and Jardim do Mar, challenge surfers to ride their spectacular waves. These surfing spots are nicknamed ‘Europe’s Hawaii’ and are considered among some of the best surfspots in Europe. Both villages, surfing beaches were venues for the World Surfing Championships in 2001. There are several restaurants in both these fishing villages, which of course specialise in fish dishes.

Prazeres.

Photo : the award-winning eco-hotel Hotel Jardim Atlântico

Prazeres is a historic agriculture market village with a 17^th century church perched on Calheta’s mountains Atlantic Ocean views. It’s a mountain and levada (water canal) walking paradise with its proximity to some of the most popular walks on the island such as Levada Nova and the Prazeres to Paul do Mar walk which starts from the award-winning eco-hotel Hotel Jardim Atlântico.

“The atmosphere in Prazeres is of one incomparable peace and charm, where time stands still and no-one is ever in a hurry.”

Paul da Serra & the famous Rabaçal levada walk. From Calheta you can go up to Paul da Serra a 1,500-metre-high plateau, where there is a view of both Madeira’s coasts. You can get to from Rabaçal from there. Here the untouched UNESCO Laurissilva forest covers the mountains with a green mantle.

You can start out from Rabaçal to walk along some of the most beautiful, impressive paths into the depths of the island, until you find yourself surrounded by the Laurissilva Forest.

The Miradouros of Fonte do Bispo and the Farol (lighthouse) da Ponta do Pargo. “This belvedere is on the Paul da Serra plateau and nature lovers will feel the sensation of being enveloped by the exuberant vegetation of the Laurissilva Forest.”

“This belvedere is at the island’s westernmost point and from here we can see the rugged landscape from the lighthouse to Sítio das Achadas da Cruz.”

World class art in Calheta: Casa das Mudas Art Centre & Prazeres Art Gallery. The award-winning ‘Casa das Mudas’ art centre in Calheta is divided into two parts, a mansion built in the 16th century that belonged to a granddaughter of João Gonçalves Zarco, the discoverer of Madeira, and a new, modern wing that blends in perfectly with the surrounding scenery.

This cultural centre built into the cliff with spectacular views of the countryside and the Ocean houses presents exhibitions, musical performances, plays, conferences and many other events. The Centre has run exhibitions displaying the works of artists such as Francis Bacon, David Salle, Eric Fischl, Picasso and Dali.

Photo : view of Calheta beaches & marina from Casa das Mudas Art Centre.

The new Prazeres Art Gallery part of ‘the Quinta Pedagogica’ complex which includes a small zoo and tea and cider houses run by the local priest is behind Prazeres Church. In early 2010 it displayed works of the world famous Portuguese artist ‘Paula Rego’.

A Tourist Guide to Calheta in English including recommended swimming areas such as Calheta’s white sandy beaches and the slipway (‘the rampa’ at Paul do Mar) is available on Calheta’s Town Hall website: HERE

The source and inspiration for Paul’s article was this page on Calheta on the official Tourism website: HERE Thanks a lot Paul, that should bring the money rolling in!

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

DIÁRIO 08/03/2010

MADEIRA

Courts give 14 cars to the region in 2009. Since 2007, goods seized by the courts have been given to RAM. They have confiscated 23 vehicles (17 cars, 6 motorcycles), 1,340.40 Euros, seven items of gold and many obsolete mobile phones. 5 of the cars were destroyed, 2 were assigned to the government, 4 sold at auction and the other 12 are awaiting disposal. The gold items will be sold at auction. Any clothing is given to institutions and other items are given to government departments. The ship Blaus VII was caught in Madeiran seas carrying 1,500 kilos of cocaine in February 2007. The Portuguese Navy is temporarily using this ship for training cadets although it belongs to the Region.

Old bridge being demolished. Update on a previous report that the century-old bridge at Ribeira Brava has to be replaced. Last Friday, the demolition of this two-support bridge began and should be finished by the end of the week. It will be replaced by a pedestrian bridge which will connect both banks without any contact with the stream. This is because in the recent flooding, the surrounding ‘downtown’ areas of Ribeira Brava were flooded as the debris was obstructed by the supporting pillars.

ECONOMY

Port loses tourists from cruise ships and ferries. The Port of Funchal maintained its leadership as the port most visited by cruise ships. Until the end of the first two months of this year, 40 ships called bringing 79,336 passengers, a decrease of 3.1% over 2009. In February, when 6 ships cancelled with a loss of 13,000 tourists, the port still received 32,476 tourists. In January, there were 25 ships with 46,860 tourists. The Spanish ferry connecting Funchal to the Canary Islands and Portimão transported 18.9% more passengers than in 2009. The increase was due to ferrying 2,276 passengers to Portimão and 1,130 passengers to the Canary Islands. The Porto Santo Line carried 6,773 passengers or 21.8% fewer passengers to Porto Santo. In summary, during the first two months of this year, there were 4.2% fewer passengers, justified by the decrease of 2,497 tourists from cruise ships, 1,879 fewer on the Lobo Marinho, offset by an increase of 542 carried on the ‘Volcan de Tijarafe’.

IRS declaration. Deadline for paper-based declarations for Class A (dependent) and Class H (pensions) is 15 March. For declaration by the Internet, the period is March 10 – April 15.

POLITICS

Solidarity Fund will only come after summer. The European Commissioner for regional policy, Johannes Hahn, warned yesterday that Madeira should rely on funding from the EU Solidarity Fund for reconstruction work not arriving until after summer, due to formal procedures that must be met. The Regional Government and the Government of the Republic must work together. They must make an estimate of the cost of the damage and submit it to the EU which will work as quickly as possible. This in fact, in Brussels terms, means months. The decision of the Commission for support from the Fund requires consultation and approval of the European Parliament and the European Council. Hahn admits that support might not even come this year. It depends on when the application is formalized. It is possible for Portugal to redirect some structural and cohesion funds. There are other funds for rebuilding infrastructure which will be discussed.

EXTRA

Caritas speaks of "tsunami of solidarity". After 20th February flood, there have been more than a thousand new volunteers. The charity does not want any more donations of food as the warehouse is full. Furniture and household equipment are urgently needed. To support the victims of the storm involves huge logistics. The social work part of the operation involves Social Security, Caritas and the Army working together flawlessly. The accountancy firm Madeira Management has donated 10,000 Euros to Caritas. According to a teacher I spoke to yesterday, this is a load of cobblers, because the charity doesn’t look outside of Funchal … but there again yet again perhaps I am using a tragedy for political point scoring? Der.

ONLINE POLL

Do you believe the dispute between the Republic and the Region is resolved?

Yes 19% All short-termism politicians voted here I reckon, but I hope they are right. Der

No 50%

Maybe 31%

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

Weather forecasting platform was suggested 7 years ago – Madeira didn’t take on the project that would allow with some detail, and with 48 hours advance warning, would inform on the conditions of the state of the weather.

Inerts go to Carreiras – Funchal Council stands away from the politics of the temporary landfill sites of the Regional Government. Funchal Câmara is going to take out all the inert materials (sand, stone, mud etc.) from the site at Praia Formosa, and move it to licensed site at Carreiras, with the responsible councillor Costa Neves saying that it is "time to learn lessons for the future". "We make a point of not dumping debris and sludge into the sea and we maintain this practice", said the Environmental Spokesman for CMF. Is that responsible environmental policy by CMF, or passing the buck I wonder, as the GR has no problems with dumping muck in the sea?

Today’s main news headline : Disney comes to liven up the Flower Festival – The cruise ship of ‘Disney Cruises’ will dock in Funchal and offload characters that will mark their presence on the event. The presence of Mickey and company guarantees publicity for Madeira on a world scale at a decisive time. ‘Disney Magic’ is due to make it’s debut docking in Funchal on 18th April, the day of the cortejo (parade) of the Flower Festival, bringing the Disney’s most charismatic character Mickey Mouse and friends. Tourism haven’t confirmed the information obtained by the Diário, but they believe that the cruise visit was arranged so the passengers would be able to enjoy the Flower Festival, with a longish stop-off of almost 9 hours.

The big picture on the left : Majority of the prize-winners have not yet premiered on Madeira. Looks like there was an Oscar awards ceremony or something like that.

The main sports headline today : Tourism doesn’t take advantage of Bernardo Sousa. Bernardo Sousa is available to promote Madeira in international and national rally competitions. It just needs those responsible to contact him. BS won the rally in Portugal last weekend, and I think someone is dropping a hint that there is an opportunity being missed here.

Nacional defeated (0 – 2) in Guimarães gets further away from a European placing.

World Cup Football : Get to find out the biggest thrashings of all time.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

Did anyone see that special programme on the Madeira disaster last night on TVI? They kept a reporting team out in the field, visiting the worst affected areas, and families that had suffered badly. It’s easy to get the impression that things are returning to normal, and in downtown Funchal and Ribeira Brava town the clean up does give that impression. But out in many of the parts that don’t make the headlines, the situation is still horrible to see, with people trying to clean up and rebuild things that are just not cleanable or rebuildable in the normal sense of those words, not in weeks or even months, and certainly not without money. It’s extremely important to revive tourism here of course, and those areas are being given priority attention, but as many local people are saying it is at the expense of help for people who needed help over two weeks ago, and still do today. I suppose I will be accused again of political point scoring on the back of a tragedy, but I don’t really care, as long as people don’t get the impression that things are hunky dory for all, and a broom and hosepipe is all that’s needed to return to normal. I didn’t think I could be shocked any more after what I have seen since the 20th February … I was wrong as I found out last night.

I have been asked if it is possible to send a cheque to help orphan Feliz Abreu. It is now. With some help, he now has his own bank account. You can send a Euro cheque to Feliz at his school, made payable to ‘José Feliz Silva Abreu’. If you can please send them to one of the teachers who is helping, as I think it might be safer :

Professora Magda Borges. Escola Secundária Padre Manuel Álvares. Rua São Francisco , 9350-211 RIBEIRA BRAVA. Madeira

Transfers direct to Feliz’s account by NIB are also now possible : NIB 0038 0000 3867 5021 771 17.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and other material.

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Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Hahn’d over the dosh Johannes ; Thieving from the homeless ; Strategic buildings at risk

Der — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Tom … "Vintage hidden view point on St. Luiza street behind house # 152. No one knows about it I guess".

Many thanks to Becky for these web snippets :

"This afternoon the wardrobes and cupboards here will be a little emptier. We wish the best of luck to everyone associated with the collection and hope that it makes the lives of the people of Madeira a bit easier in the short term." MORE

"We left Madeira in the middle of the night, stealing away from our hotel, from the sleepy-eyed night clerk we roused from slumber on the lobby’s wicker furniture who watched us drive away through the glass lobby doors, from the sea finally quiet and the stars which we could see for only the second time in a week, with the yellow lights of the city guiding us, the air calm, the night quiet, the whistling wind at last abated–we left the island more full of peace than when we arrived". BLOG STORY

"A bit more on Funchal ships over the years" … Pete. HERE

"Comment here about Graf Zeppelin passed over Funchal" … Pete HERE AND HERE SIGHTING / PHOTO

Also from Pete … "Johannes Hahn, European Commissioner flying over Funchal looking at February flood damage on the 7/3/10. Thanks for all that Pete.

Which is rather good timing, as Paul kindly sent this in, along with the CR article :

Know your EU Commissioners: Johannes Hahn : Without a doubt the most significant EU Commissioner for Madeirans indeed all Madeiran residents is Johannes Hahn, European commissioner for regional policy who is now responsible for a policy that accounts for about one-third of the EU’s spending. He is expected to overtake agriculture as the single biggest budget item. He was of course in the Region to assess the floods damage and discuss scope for EU support with the President of Madeira’s regional government, Alberto João Jardim. The Madeira visit follows up a meeting the Hahn held with the Portuguese Interior Minister, Mr Rui Pereira, in Bruges (Belgium) on 26 February.

The sheer scale of regional spending, roughly €50 billion per year, makes Hahn one of the more important figures in the college.

Johannes Hahn, lover of baroque music and a keen sailor, is that rare breed of politician who does not feel a constant need to talk.

Philosopher: “At university, Hahn quickly discovered that philosophy suited him far better than law. His whole outlook on life changed soon after, however, when, aged 22, he was diagnosed with cancer. “If you are confronted with death, your priorities change,” says Hahn, who still goes for regular check-ups at the age of 52.”

Vienna man: “spent his entire life in Austria’s capital, Vienna, occupying the same flat for the past 24 years”. To read Johannes Hahn’s profile and CV click to this ARTICLE

Imagine Ronaldo playing for Australia!

Had the planets aligned differently, Cristiano Ronaldo might have been playing for the Australian national team rather than Portugal.

“Maria-Angela, 80, and Jose, 81, have had 13 children and four live with them in Perth. Ronaldo, 25, was just a child when Vivieros – who works as a cleaner – moved to Australia to find a better life about 20 years ago.

These days Vivieros pines for the beauty of Madeira, but his parents – who migrated to Perth about a decade ago – are settled and have no wish to return. ”They look after me and I look after them as well,” Vivieros said. ”Now my life’s here.”

Western Australia boasts a Portuguese population of about 8000 and 85 per cent are from Madeira, according to the Portuguese consulate in Perth. The Madeirans started arriving in large numbers in the 1950s and many settled in Fremantle as fishermen.” Link to full article

Marítimo only managed a dreary 0 – 0 draw on Madeira yesterday with Académica. Nacional play tonight, and could climb to 5th in the league table if they win.

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

DIÁRIO 07/03/2010

FRONT PAGE NEWS

Infrastructures in areas of risk. Link to the map is on yesterday’s blog. Infrastructures of strategic importance are in areas at risk. These include those needed in an emergency, for example fire stations and health centres. Porto Santo is one of the three regions in Portuguese territory that are most at risk if global temperatures increase by two degrees over the next few years, (December 2004 study). Madeira is at risk depending on volcanic activity on the island of La Palma in the Canary Islands. A BBC documentary said that in the worst case scenario, a tsunami tidal wave could reach Madeira within a few hours. By the end of the century, it is predicted that the archipelago will have an average temperature increase of 2 – 3 degrees with a 35% reduction in current rainfall. Water availability will decrease by 40 – 50%, (Filipe Duarte Santos, September 2006). Madeira has a population density (310 inhabitants / square km) higher than the EU and national average. 75% occupy only 35% of the territory, mainly on the south coast. 45% of the population (130,000) reside in Funchal, (1,500 inhabitants/ square km). Since 1991, only two counties have increased in population, Câmara de Lobos (10%) and Santa Cruz (26.7%). The first increase is natural and the second as a result of improved road access to Funchal. The development of the Calheta – Machico transport network has allowed a more equal distribution of the population on the south coast, resulting in Funchal losing 12,000 inhabitants between 1991 and 2001. Due to the physical characteristics of the territory, the north coast has been consistently losing population and represents less than 10% of the total population of Madeira.

MADEIRA

‘Delusional fantasy’ reported in the London newspapers. This story has been reported in previous blogs. Diário has picked up on the Daily Mirror and Daily Telegraph reports of the discovery of a nail from the time of the crucifixion of Christ, on the Ilhéu da Pontinha (Forte de S. José). Élvio Sousa of CEAM says it is purely delusional fantasy, agreed by Brian Philp from the Centre for Archaeology. Élvio Sousa guarantees that reports that objects have been found on this site are manifestly false. In the area of the dig, there were found objects from the eighteenth, nineteenth and twentieth centuries, however there are some remnants that can be traced to the seventeenth century. He said it is sensationalism to say that these were found in a wooden box by the sea, perfectly preserved for over two thousand years. The nail that was found is strong, but is just like the ones used in constructing residential dwellings in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, and there are many of these found in the excavation. Contacted by Diário, Renato Barros the owner of Forte de São José, said he himself found the pieces therefore it was a finding, not an archaeological discovery. He added that 200 – 300 people visit the Fort each day and a "person from the British Museum" took note of the relics and then returned to London where the museum authenticated the pieces. He said he would not give any further details, as they will be divulged in Madeira in conjunction with museum officials.

Lack of salary causes strike in Jardim da Serra hotel. Tired of not receiving their wages on time, 16 of the 20 employees of the Hotel Quinta do Jardim da Serra started a two-day strike yesterday. The staff have repeatedly threatened to go on strike since last year for wages paid in arrears, and job insecurity since early 2009. The situation worsened at the end of last year when the salary was two months in arrears but a strike was suspended as the company said they would pay the salaries. The staff are on strike now because they have not received wages for December and the Christmas bonus.

Thieves take items donated for the homeless. Dozens of articles donated by the public for victims of the storm of February 20th were stolen from the warehouse at Rua do Brasil, Nazaré. The burglars entered through the door to the rubbish storage area. According to the president of the charity Cáritas Diocesana do Funchal, they took appliances such as toasters, kitchen mixers and hairdryers. The charity had already suspected that the warehouse could be subject to a possible burglary as some volunteers had noticed on Friday, a group of individuals who attempted to divert products. The doors will be reinforced and the police have been asked to investigate. As well as the army, police will patrol the area.

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

MPT [Earth Party] makes possible Serrão [PS-M leader] as vice of the table of parliament.

Women of Madeira that telephone to APAV answered in the Azores – On the Day of the Woman there is a signalling of the lack of an office of APAV on Madeira, the presence of 20 complaints of domestic violence per week to the PSP Police, and the myths amongst the young people that consider the pressure and the jealousy to be normal. Victim support for Madeira’s battered women is handled initially in the Azores, by the Associação Portuguesa de Apoio à Vítima (APAV), as there is no office on Madeira. This is despite of there being 511 complaints to the Public Security Police in the first six months of 2009. The calls to a Madeiran number are automatically rerouted to Ponta Delgada, in the Azores. The distance causes some difficulties, as often the women are desperate and need information immediately, but the staff of APAV in the Azores need to contact someone on Madeira to seek further help, to give support and if necessary access to sheltered accommodation.

Today’s main news headline : Solidarity already raised €7.3 million. Companies and citizens are on a wave of notable generosity. Mota Engil on its own is giving 1.2 million Euros for 10 (or even 12?) houses for the homeless due to the storms of 20th February. But there are many and good examples that arrive from all the Country and Region. The generosity of companies and the Portuguese is unprecedented. The Diário has done an assessment of the various fund raising initiatives and bodies, to come up with the figure of €7.3 million, and has also concluded that over 40% of that figure is promised by companies. Aside from Mota Engil, Jerónimo Martins has pledged €1 million, BES (Banco Espírito Santo), €500,000, Montepio €150,000 (plus more direct help), Totta €100,000, and Galp Fuel €200,000, are amongst the most generous pledges to support the various fund raising initiatives. Amongst many other sources of support, the Portuguese Football Federation is giving €100,000, whilst the teams Sporting and naval have donated complete gate receipts. Two ‘countries’ have also given, with a €50,000 cheque from the USA Embassy in Lisbon, and €556,000 from one of the poorest countries in the world, East Timor. The list goes on, and on, and on ….

Pestana JR, R. Oudinote and the tunnel Sá Carneiro reopen. Funchal today will be better-off. Running late are Avenida do Mar and Rua do Anadia. As Funchal returns to normal, on a day to day basis at least, roads and tunnels are reopening albeit with restrictions in some cases. Rua Visconde do Anadia needs two or three more weeks before reopening, because the drains are completely blocked. Also the roads Avenida do Mar and Comunidades Madeirenses will continue with restrictions for some time, although there will also be some movement on the South side in a few days when drainage problems have been resolved.

The main sports headline today : Latest draw distances Marítimo from Europe – The ‘verde-rubros’ returned to distance themselves further from the objective of a European placing. The draw with Académica left the team of Mitchell in 10th place. Tonight Nacional close the weekend fixtures in Guimarães.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Flood clean-up video ; Euro interest rate held ; Whale watching ; SS Funchal liner

Der — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Roslyn … "The sun is rising again over Madeira – Sunrise over Funchal from the Casino Park Hotel September 2009".

Many thanks to Elaine (East) for these two web snippets :

Watching whales in Madeira. Madeira is a great place to visit! It has long been a popular destination among those seeking respite from the northern European winter, but while its gentle climate has long been celebrated, it is less widely known for its rich marine-life HERE

Anyone heard of the Madeira Liberation Army? Police blitzed by odd Maddie claims. ….The wacky reports include: An email from the Madeira Liberation Army who claimed to be holding Madeleine and had a video showing her in good health, but couldn’t vouch for her safety unless the city of Funchal was granted independence. UK DAILY STAR

More on that story HERE … many thanks to Don

Many thanks to Pete, why said this fine ship used to do the Lisbon-Azores-Madeira service … "SS Funchal is one of a few Classic Liners still operating today as a cruise ship. This delightful 10,000–ton Portuguese cruise ship has become a favourite for many around the world as passengers return again and again to cruise on her. Although 46 year old, she has received a number of refits and has been meticulously maintained". FULL STORY

Pete also found this link … a biography of one of my personal local heroes ALBERTO JOÃO JARDIM

And many thanks to Becky for this update video … 10 days after the floods in Funchal.

And you thought, or maybe even hoped, that I had forgotten this weekends football? Today at 4 pm Marítimo host Académica, and tomorrow Nacional visit V. Guimarães … SportTV1 8.15 pm. I believe it is free entrance for the Marítimo game today for both lots of supporters, but I can’t guarantee that.

The European Central Bank (ECB) has kept the eurozone interest rate at its record low of 1% for the 10th month in a row, as expected. The ECB also signalled it would scale back the special lending measures introduced during the financial crisis. ECB president Jean-Claude Trichet said that economic recovery in the euro area was "on track but will remain uneven". (Source : BBC).

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

DIÁRIO 06/03/2010

FRONT PAGE NEWS

Tragedy caused a loss of 1.6 million Euros in tourism revenue. Madeira had 15,000 fewer tourists the week after the disaster of February 20th. This is the conclusion drawn from the movements through the port and airport and data provided by the main hotels on the island. Six cruise ships cancelled with a loss of 13,000 visiting passengers. 20% of these ships were going to stay overnight. At least 2,000 hotel guests cancelled or returned early. There were 6,000 fewer plane passengers arriving of which 70% would have been tourists or 27,000 overnight stays. The average stay is 5.4 nights and the largest losses were international flights (- 49.8%). The impact on tourism was a loss of 1.1 million Euros from hotels and half a million Euros from cruise ships. This is based on an estimated 40 Euros spent per day by each cruise ship passenger, and the official statistics from last year in relation to the revenue from hotel guests (249.28) or the cost of overnight stays (41.90). The average bed occupancy rate for February was 40%, a 6.7% drop from last year and from the 57.1% achieved in February 2008. Hotel receptionists said that many tourists returned early after seeing distressing images in the newspaper reports. They gave donations and the majority said they would still like to return to Madeira. The decrease in hotel reservations for March is worst for the five-star hotels (31% bed occupancy rate compared to 37.2% last year) and three-star hotels (64.5% as opposed to 72.6%). The average occupancy for March is predicted at 52% which has been decreasing gradually from 53.1% last year, 64.45% in 2008 and 60.7% in 2007.

MADEIRA

It rained seven times more than normal. In February, there were 458.7 millimetres of precipitation in Funchal, which is almost seven times the average for this month. This corresponds to the highest figure in February since records began in 1865. The amount of rain that fell on February 20th, 144.3 mm, is the highest since 1920. In one hour, more than 50 mm fell. 2nd February was the second wettest day this February, with a recorded 129 mm. On the Continent, February was the wettest for 24 years and there was above average rainfall in the Azores. Wind speed registered gusts of 57 km/h on the 4th February in Funchal and 108 km/h at the weather station at Areeiro. Alberto Jardim calls for an end to alarmist news about bad weather. "The worst thing that can happen to society is living under alarmism. We need serenity, very calm and gradually diminish the psychological effects that the tragedy has caused."

Progress after the storm. In the county of Ribeira Brava, there are two people still missing and 211 people remain homeless. 90% of the roads are cleared of debris and the demolition of the century-old bridge has begun. The bridge was partially damaged by the flood and it will be replaced by a suspension bridge which, unlike the old one, does not depend on two supports in the stream. There are no more isolated areas in the county now the new military bridge connects Fajã da Ribeira to the rest of the island. The population in Curral das Freiras are returning to normal life but still become alarmed at the instability of some slopes with landslides occurring. They feel trapped in the isolated area and one person is still missing. There are 34 families homeless in Câmara de Lobos municipality. Roads in Jardim de Serra have all been cleaned and repaired. Santa Cruz Council rehoused only 6 of 83 families last week. They do not know when the remaining 77 families will be permanently settled as they want to return to the areas they used to live in. 48 homes suffered significant damage and repair work should begin next week on some of them, but another 19 homes cannot be recovered (one shown in photo). There are a total of 237 homeless in the county and 184 of these are staying with relatives or neighbours. The machines are still slowly working along the ribeira da Luso-Brasileira, next to the Estrada do Livramento, to remove the large amounts of sludge and debris. They have to work slowly as there are still people missing in the area.

POLITICS

Ismael Fernandes leaves the MPT. Ismael Fernandes held a senior position in the Earth Party and gave the motive for his resignation as dishonest financial management by the party leader Isidoro Gonçalves. He will not give details of the amount of debt but said, "I am not responsible for any debt the party has undertaken while I was part of the directorate." "I also resign for the reckless and dishonest way that João Isidoro manages the finances of the party." Isidoro wants Ismael to clarify any complaints about his financial management or be guilty of defamation. Ismael thinks the future of the party is very black (dark/gloomy) under Isidoro’s leadership and he has not received any reactions from other members of the administration. Isidoro denies any illegality in the accounts, noting that they are available to party members and the Constitutional Court. The party has a debt of 100,000 Euros, of which 40,000 Euros are from the MPT’s festa and will be paid by the end of the mandate. He said Ismael resigned the day after the party approved cuts in remunerations and the management model has not changed over the past two years. Both Ismael Fernandes and João Isidoro were members of the Socialist Party, then left and set up the independent MPT (Movimento Partido da Terra).

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

Today’s main news headline : Equipment [infrastructure] situated in risk zones – Of concern, schools, fire stations, pavilions, and commercial centres. Locations : river banks, unstable cliff faces, close to the sea. Taking into account the work of reconstruction. MAP OF ‘AT RISK’ CONSTRUCTIONS HERE This is a Diário assessment of over 30 strategic structures on Madeira and Porto Santo island that they consider at risk from nature and natural events.

European support in the hands of [prime minister] Sócrates – Commissioner Johannes Hahn was moved by the evidence left by the water torrents and considers the situation inside the parameters that permit European support. But almost everything depends on Lisbon. What Hahn said was that he only takes responsibility for the support coming from the European Solidarity Fund, and the rest is down to central government renegotiating the support ‘package’ destined for Portugal. That needs Prime Minister José Sócrates to take on board a different strategy. It’s a tricky issue, because it will mean that the government may need to agree to divert money originally intended for structural and cohesion funding, but there are also other possibilities, said Hahn, indicating the the EU would be a flexible as possible given the right approach from the Portuguese Government.

Thieves steal articles intended for those made homeless – The warehouse of the charity Caritas in Nazaré was raided.

Number of dead from the big storm rises to 43.

Business remains closed in some parts of the city of Funchal – Recovery works prolonged in the rua da Alfândega and Tanoeiros.

Fado solidarity concert sold out. That’s the the big photo on the left, taken at the fund raising event last night at the Casino.

The main sports headline today : Bernardo Sousa wins Torrié Rally – The Madeiran makes a great start in the Rally Championship of Portugal 2010. Vítor Sá was obliged to pull out. It was Bernardo’s first title at national level, as he and co-driver Nuno Rodrigues da Silva drove their Ford Fiesta S2000 to victory. At one stage they lost control of the car and could have been killed, and that cost them over 50 seconds off their advantage, making the achievement even more remarkable. They won by a 6.6 second margin in the end. Next stop for Bernardo is in April, in Jordan.

A right old mixture of extremes of good and bad news on today’s front page. Two showing support for Madeira from the population, and from Europe, and then those thieving gits in Nazaré spoiling the show. How low can people get! The article about infrastructures in danger may be technically factual, but most certainly over the top, and will do nothing to help the tourism or economic situation here. Wherever one builds a property in this world there are some some risks, and building by a mountain that has existed from long before mankind indicates that it is likely to still be there in a good many years from now. And yes rocks will fall, rivers will flood, and the power of the sea will take its toll now and again, but what are we supposed to do, go back to living in caves? I, like many others who have homes here, looked up at a towering rockface when contemplating my new home, and thought about the possibility of a serious rock fall, but that was a risk far too small to deter me.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Just a third of homes insured ; EU support for Madeira ; Footpath condition report

Der — Sat, 06 Mar 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Becky … Lapas and Planalto at the Roca Mar, Caniço do Baixo

Many thanks to Paul for these articles on EU support and footpaths :

Commissioner’s visit to see damage and discuss scope for EU support

"Johannes Hahn, European Commissioner for Regional Policy, will be in Madeira on 6 and 7 March to see at first-hand the devastation caused by the floods which hit the Portuguese island on 20 February. He will assess the damage and discuss scope for EU support with the President of Madeira’s regional government, Alberto João Jardim. This visit follows up a meeting the Commissioner held with the Portuguese Interior Minister, Mr Rui Pereira, in Bruges (Belgium) on 26 February.

Speaking ahead of his visit, Mr. Hahn said: “ We do not know the full scale of the tragedy yet, but we do know that a lot of people lost their lives and that many more are suffering. My thoughts go out to the victims and their families. The Commission will do its utmost to assist Madeira through the EU Solidarity Fund, as well as with its Structural and Cohesion Funds. Our aim is, to help restore normal living conditions as soon as possible, in particular ensuring access to running water, and bringing bridges, roads and businesses back into operation.”

Drawing on the European Union Solidarity Fund

The Portuguese authorities have 10 weeks (i.e. until 1 May) in which to submit an application to the Commission for assistance from the European Union Solidarity Fund. They are currently preparing such an application, with the help of the Commission. At this stage no estimate of possible payments can be made.

The Commission will decide as quickly as possible if the criteria of application for the Solidarity Fund are met, and if so, will propose an amount of aid that can be made available. In order for the funding to be released, the Commission will then have to ask the European Parliament and the EU-Member States to adopt an amending budget to be incorporated into the Community budget.

The EU aid may be used to finance the most urgent measures: providing temporary accommodation for the victims, repairing essential infrastructure and clearing land and devastated villages. Measures will be selected jointly by the Commission and the Portuguese authorities before the aid is released. Damage to private property will not be covered by the above arrangements.

Other resources available

The Madeira regional programme (allocated €320 million from the European Regional Development Fund – ERDF in 2007-2013) may also provide aid. In addition, Madeira also benefits from €143 million from the Cohesion Fund through the national programme called “ Territorial Enhancement ”. Specific measures can be taken inside these two programmes to respond to the catastrophe and for longer term reconstruction.

The Portuguese authorities have a certain margin of manoeuvre and have also the possibility to transfer funds from their other programmes. Under Cohesion Policy 2007-2013, the country has been allocated a total of €21.5 billion broken down into 14 programmes.

The European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF) facts:

The European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF), which was set up in 2002, allocates emergency aid to Member States and applicant countries which have been struck by a major natural disaster. Its annual budget is €1 billion.

Since 2002, the Commission has received 69 applications for financial assistance from the Fund of which 33 led to the granting of financial support totalling more than €2.15 billion. Portugal was granted aid from the EUSF in the wake of the forest fires which occurred in the summer of 2003. On that occasion it received €48.5 million.

Madeira benefits from a reinforced support (additional funding) from Cohesion Policy as it is one of the EU’s seven “outermost regions” with a specific status recognised in the EU Treaty to take into account their specific geographic situation and their insularity."

Source: Lithuanian website

Madeira’s footpaths: report February 2010

The Regional Secretariat for the Environment and Natural Resources (SRA) reported last February on the state of Madeira’s footpaths. The Report posted on the official Tourism website which is detailed includes list of footpaths in good condition and footpaths temporarily closed and maps.

Footpaths in good condition

· PR1 Vereda do Areeiro (Pico do Areeiro – Achada do Teixeira)

· PR 1.1 Vereda da Ilha (Achada do Teixeira – Ilha)

· PR 1.2 Vereda do Pico Areeiro (Achada do Teixeira – Pico Ruivo)

· PR 1.3 Vereda da Encumeada (Pico de Areeiro – Encumeada)

· PR5 Vereda das Funduras (Portela – Maroços)

· PR 6 Levada das 25 Fontes (Rabaçal – Risco)

· PR 8 Vereda da Ponta de São Lourenço

· PR 11 Levada dos Balcões (Ribeiro Frio – Balcões)

· PR 13 Vereda do Fanal (Assobiadores – Fanal)

· PR 14 Levada dos Cedros (Fanal – Curral Falso)

· PR 15 Vereda da Ribeira da Janela (Curral Falso – Ribeira da Janela)

· PR19 Vereda do Paul do Mar

· Path between Queimadas and Pico das Pedras

Footpaths temporarily closed

· PR 7 Levada do Moinho (Ribeira da Cruz – Lamaceiros)

· PR 9 Levada do Caldeirão Verde (Queimadas – Caldeirão Verde)

· PR10 Levada do Furado (Ribeiro Frio – Lamaceiros – Portela)

· PR 12 Caminho Real da Encumeada (Boca da Corrida – Encumeada)

· PR 16 Levada da Fajã do Rodrigues (Fajã da Amã – Ribeira do Inferno)

· PR 17 Caminho do Pináculo and Folhadal (Lombo do Mouro – Caramujo – Folhadal – Encumeada)

· PR 18 Levada do Rei (Quebradas – Ribeiro Bonito)

To see the entire Report and maps click HERE

To see a map of the current status of the Madeira Levada Walks click HERE

Many thanks to Elaine out West for this article from yesterday’s Diário de Notícias :

Rehousing is a problem in Serra d’Agua IHM wants to keep families in the same neighbourhood, but few homes are available. The resettlement of households in Serra d’Agua affected by the storm remains the main concern of the Madeiran Housing Investment (IHM), due to housing shortages in the parish of Ribeira Brava. Paulo Atouguia, president of IHM, will this morning, together with the president of the local authority, to try to raise awareness of owners of empty houses in Serra d’Agua to lease them to the 139 people who had to leave their homes. "Our goal is to get people relocated near the place where they lived," he told the DIÁRIO. But the main priority is to rehabilitate them; if no solutions are found in the parish, the IHM will look for houses in the centre of Ribeira Brava, or even in another county. This at a time when about 28 households, mostly in Funchal, have been placed temporarily in new housing. Right now, says Paulo Atouguia, the HMI is on the ground to assess not only the proposals for lease which the authorities have received – to assess conditions on offer – but also to conduct a survey of the damage to the homes of displaced persons, a task that is also being carried out by the Regional Laboratory of Civil Engineering and the respective municipalities.

Here a link on Madeira light houses … Pete. HERE Thanks Pete, one of my favourite subjects, though disappointed that there is no photo of the Ribeira Brava lighthouse.

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

DIÁRIO DE NOTÍCIAS 05/03/2010

MADEIRA

Fajã da Ribeira out of isolation. The military bridge connecting this area to Ribeira Brava was finished yesterday and can now be used by motorists. For the assembly, materials had to be transported from Portugal in three trips using military aircraft (C130), transported to the area, a large crane stabilized on site and the bridge mounted by nine soldiers supervised by senior army officers. The bridge can support up to 22 tons and measures 18 metres long and 4.10 metres wide. There are no plans at present for any other military bridges.

Only a third of homes have insurance. Data from the Portuguese Association of Insurers which represents 70 insurance companies operating in the domestic market. On the Continent, the number of houses insured is 50% and traditionally in Europe, house insurance covers 70 – 90% of homes. Insurers originally estimated that compensation after the 20th February storm would reach 60 million Euros but this figure has been revised upwards to 80 million Euros. 54 million Euros covers 616 claims from commerce and industry, with only 454 claims for habitation (4 million Euros). There has been only one claim on life insurance, 11 for injury at work or personal indemnity and 79 for damage to vehicles.

POLITICS

No time to receive the MEPs. The Vice-president of the Regional Government, João Cunha e Silva, claimed a lack of space in the agenda to receive the socialist MEPs who visited the region from Wednesday until yesterday. Alberto Jardim had also refused to meet the four, claiming he had not been contacted through the official channels. He also thought it was in "bad taste" to include the socialist MEP Edite Estrela, whose legal case against him has been ruled in his favour by the Court of Appeal. The Mayor of Funchal was also unavailable so they met with the Vice-president of Funchal, Paulo Fontes. The Spanish MEP said, "If someone did not want to meet the delegation, that decision was their responsibility and strengthened the commitment of the European Socialist group in relation to the autonomous regions, such as Madeira, in supporting the transfer of aid to respond to the effects of the disaster."

Azores / Madeira alliance in the National Assembly. Members from the Azores and Madeira in the National Assembly joined together to try to force the State to re-pay 5% of the income tax revenue to the local councils of the Autonomous Regions. The proposal to alter the State Budget came from the PSD-M but the MPs from the Azores, from other parties, also agreed to it. The proposal is also supported by national PSD and CDS-PP members. Madeiran councils claim that IRS arrears are worth 8 million Euros, and Funchal Council is owed 5 million Euros. Last year, the Ministry of Finance ruled that since the IRS revenue goes to the Regional Governments, they should pay the 5% to the local councils. But the Regions counter-argued that this financial relationship belongs to the Executive in Lisbon. Recently, the municipalities asked the national Parliament to resolve this issue and the Mayor of Funchal has begun court action against the Ministry of Finance.

JORNAL DA MADEIRA

FRONT PAGE NEWS

IGA invests 11 million Euros in water recovery. The President of Investment and Management of Water (IGA) pledged yesterday to invest 11 million Euros for the reconstruction of the damaged water supply network. It will cost 4 million Euros to repair the damaged drinking water supply network and it will take at least two and a half months. Water should still be boiled in affected areas and the drinking water supply is still unavailable in Jangão in the municipality of Ponta do Sol, in Zimbreiros in Apresentação and in Serra d’Água in the county of Ribeira Brava. The worst area is Serra d’Água where the complete network has been destroyed. The remaining 7 million Euros is for damage to the supply of water for irrigation and this should be resolved within a month. The problem areas for these damaged channels are Ribeira Brava, Funchal and Ponta do Sol.

REGION

New access for Meia Légua and the north of the island. The Regional Government has given Estradas da Madeira the contract to build a new access road to Meia Légua. This will be a more permanent safer road to this parish in Serra de Água, and a link to the north of the island through the Encumeada tunnel. The new route will be 2.6 km long and include a 2,100 m tunnel with three emergency exits. There will be two bridges and a roundabout linking the expressway in Serra de Água. The cost is estimated at 41.5 million Euros and the project was planned previously but never implemented due to a lack of funds.

LAST PAGE

GNR will have another dog for search and rescue. The team in Madeira will have another dog as another one is necessary to cover the region. The commander of the Territorial branch of the GNR said that first they have to find the right dog and then a handler who needs total commitment to the job. The team in Madeira has only one dog for detecting human odour and this dog is presently in convalescence. There are four dogs trained to detect drugs. Diário has a long article about the two dogs that came over from Portugal to search after the February 20th storm. They are Timmy, a 5 year old border collie who has returned to Portugal while Sacha, a six year old golden retriever, remains on the island. Each handler works exclusively with his dog. When the dog detects a victim, it signals this by barking. If the dog is unsure, it smells and scrapes. They are trained to work in various scenarios/types of terrain and weather conditions. The dogs are trained from an early age by being rewarded for detecting human odour and they treat it like a game.

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

Tragedy harms tourism to the tune of €1.6 million – In just 15 days, the tourism sector suffered a sharp fall, between visitor losses from cruise ships and planes.

Satellite locates origins of collapses – A cabinet is being created that will study mountainsides and modern solutions to secure unstable slopes. IMAGE HERE. The assessments of the landslides and rock falls in the lands of Funchal has been done. Satellite images have pinpointed the precise problem areas, and now Funchal Council is looking for solutions to secure against further collapses. Engineer and councillor, Amílcar Gonçalves, has been chosen to lead the cabinet that will study the biggest problem in Funchal, the risk of rock falls and landslides. The scale of the problem was highlighted on 20th February, when after extreme rainfall over a long period, 173 collapses occurred in the high and medium zones of Funchal, mostly along a strip between Santo António and Monte. The task ahead to find the solutions that will secure the problem area at an economic cost will not be an easy one.

Today’s main news headline : "The Social Democrats Party of Madeira at this moment needs to change". Miguel Albuquerque highlighted matters and ignored the messages of [president] Jardim about taking a lead in the storms. Now, he has received Edite Estrela, to the contrary of the Regional Government. In an interview about the aftermath, the pretender [to the throne of Jardim as president of Madeira and the PSD-M] affirms his readiness for the succession. But he says that he would not continue in [Funchal] Council even if the law actually permits that, because he has a profession and doesn’t depend on "pans and perches". He supports the remodelling of the PSD-M, but without wanting to refer that to Jardim, because "that’s his problem". ‘Pans and perches’ is some colloquial expression that I couldn’t work out, but I think refers in part to ‘cushy jobs’. I am not surprised that the Diário made this today’s lead story, as Madeira’s top man outside of the Regional Assembly seems to be breaking ranks. It has been a suppressed as much as possible, within the PSD-M, but it has been no secret for some time that the President of Funchal Câmara has had his eye on the top job of Jardim. Now that Jardim has indicated that he might remain in post after his alleged planned retirements in 2011, perhaps that has prompted Albuquerque to speak out now, perhaps (excuse my french), a sort of ‘S*** or bust’ tactic. I am looking forward to reading this in full in the printed edition of the Diário tonight.´

[José] Sócrates is coming the Flower Festival in April – The prime minister said to the Diário that he is coming to see the rebuilding. Yesterday he left Maputo [Mozambique], which is calling for Madeiran businessmen.

Delays in 270 scholarship distresses in the University.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Teaming up with the French and Spanish ; Santa Cruz update ; Shopping by army truck

Der — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Rita … "Lovely place for a honeymoon, taken from the plateau".

(I vaguely remember those days … sunshine and wispy clouds. Der)

Many thanks to Elaine (West) for this from yesterday’s Jornal da Madeira :

Emigrants from England help Victor. Five Madeiran emigrants who live in Walsall, England, returned to Madeira to see what is happening in their homeland after the storm and also to give aid to Vítor, the boy from Serra d’Agua who told the Jornal da Madeira that in the flood he had lost money which he had saved to help his father. When they saw the story written in the Jornal da Madeira by Judith Sousa of RTP International, and Victor’s photo, the brothers Vieira and Silva called on the Church of St. Jude’s in Chamberlin Hill to help Madeira, and in particular the nine-year old boy.

The appeal touched many people, resulting in donations totalling 130 Euros to give to Vítor, in compensation for the amount that he had lost. The rest of the money collected from the population of Walsall was delivered by the emigrants to a Madeiran association concerned with the recovery of the island and assistance to evacuees.

The brothers João and Diogo Vieira, João Xavier, José Antonio and Duarte Silva leave today for England, after a week visiting their families in Boa Nova and, insofar as they could, helping Madeira.

And thanks also to Paul for this :

Braemar Cruise Liner will head south for the sub-tropical delights of Madeira from October 2010.

Fred Olsen’s European Cruises for 2010 include Funchal. Every cruise offers the friendly and attentive service typical of Fred Olsen Cruise Lines.

‘The Canaries Collection’ will start from the 5th October 2010. The ship will leave from Dover, then go to Funchal (Madeira), Santa Cruz (La Palma), Santa Cruz (Tenerife), Las Palmas (Gran Canaria), Arrecife (Lanzarote), Lisbon (Portugal), Dover. SOURCE

Jon & Deb dropped me a line yesterday, and I am sure they won’t mind me reproducing it here and filling up some empty blog space with an interesting report :

All well at this end although it’s going to take "forever" to get our roads / bridges and walls back "up". Massive devastation in the forests / hills above us – mostly washed down (and away) our way, taking the "easy" route either side of our house (some down our road) but mainly down the valley and ending up across the rapida. Has undermined the foundations of the greenhouses below us – ribeira went underground! The promenade bridge in Santa Cruz (adjacent to the Hotel Vila Gale) is damaged badly and was nearly washed away and the promenade is closed – currently being "worked on" – noisy for Hotel guests (but not according to the tourist board)! The President of Santa Cruz has been strangely quiet … but we do have diggers and lorries clearing up locally. Our nearest access roads are now passable with care – two are severely undermined for half their width and with no walls, just some fluttering plastic tape if you are lucky! The main road leading into Santa Cruz has had half it’s tarmac stripped bare and is effectively down to one (zig zag) lane with many arterial roads still partially blocked by landslides, some "ongoing". Water supply fully restored but with many vulnerable bare surface pipes and holes in roads at water "distribution" points, it is in danger of failing again – not to mention the "leaning electric poles of Gaula" that are in danger of falling over unless fixed! The infrastructure is not good BUT people are going about their daily business as well as they can and working hard and looking forwards – the spirit of the Madeira people is amazing, friendly, helpful and determined.

Cloudy, windy and showers here today but … the sun has just broken through!

Glad that you are safe, sound etc – thoughts go to your local peoples and their personal tragedy.

Jon and Deb p.s. Good news – From Sheila, Sally the dog has been adopted!

This came in from Pete, and I have not had time to look at it yet, but I am sure if must be good!

"This could be interesting how UK troops got involved with Funchal in 1931". TIME MAGAZINE MADEIRA HISTORY : Please read 20th century 1931 … as well … Pete

Many thanks to Elaine once again for some odds and ends and yesterday’s top news stories :

Apparently, the tourist attractions are a near-death experience in Fungchal, Madeira. …Yesterday we started out by walking along the shorefront in Fungchal, Madeira and it is a beautiful spot. We only had a couple of hours before we had to be back on the boat to catch an excursion so we stayed close by but the water is gorgeous as is the town, even with the mud that lined the streets. Apparently there had been a lot of rain and flooding and they were at the end of cleaning it up. There were beautiful gardens and we got some great pictures … MORE

The plane spotters have PHOTOS of the Portuguese Air Force planes bringing in equipment.

DIÁRIO 04/03/2010

FRONT PAGE NEWS

Almost a thousand people apply for psychological support. In the early days after the storm of 20th February, the Department of Mental Health assisted over five hundred people of all ages. In the temporary morgue near the airport and at the Hospital Dr. Nélio Mendonça, the department supported more than 300 people. In recent days, after the first three or four days, it has settled back to the normal demand on the services. Some people will need constant monitoring. There is a healthy expression of grief but some people might show signs of post traumatic stress disorder later on.

Urban arrangement in place of the landfill. The provisional ‘pebble beach’ at the Avenida do Mar may be the basis of an urban intervention that benefits Funchal. This mound of earth and stones was removed from the streams over the past two weeks. They can either be removed and used in the reconstruction work or can remain there and be the basis of an urban arrangement. The authorities have not yet made a decision. According to the Jornal da Madeira, on this makeshift platform at the sea front, there has been deposited over 100,000 cubic metres of stone. This is equivalent to 5,500 lorry trips.

Urban slopes require engineering solutions. There were four deaths and three people went missing from the Rua Prof. Eleutério de Aguiar in the area of Laranjal, on the 20th February. There is still a threat of landslides in this area so Funchal Council has sent teams from specialist companies to identify possible engineering solutions. Until their surveys are completed, people in this area are warned not to return home. Some houses in high-risk areas might have to be abandoned. The residents return during the day to clean their houses but do not feel secure enough to sleep there.

MADEIRA

Taken to the supermarket by army truck. 500 residents have been isolated for the past 15 days in Lombo do Moleiro in Serra, as the road has not been usable. The army has laid on transport to allow residents to collect essential supplies, for example food and medicines. The link between São Vicente and Ribeira Brava was open for civilian vehicles only between 1 and 2 pm before being reopened yesterday afternoon. There is provisional access between Meia-Légua and Serra de Água. Care needs to be taken, especially in the Túnel da Encumeada.

Storm took 196 to hospital. Between Saturday 20th February and 9 am Sunday 21st February, 120 people were assisted by the Emergency Service of the Hospital ‘Nélio Mendonça’. In the following few days, another 76 attended. It is unknown how many victims of the storm were assisted in the rural Health Centres. Seven patients required Orthopaedic Surgery beds and all possible beds were made vacant. The main injuries were fractured legs and arms, light wounds, multiple trauma and hypothermia.

Four families isolated for 12 days. 11 people in the Ribeira do Serrado were isolated in the interior of the ribeira de Santa Cruz for 12 days. The bridge that links them to Serrado was destroyed in the storm. The bridge has now been rebuilt but priority was given to Construtora do Tâmega for their machines to clean the roads. The six landslides in this area did not endanger any homes but affected the roads. The residents complain that a landslide from an illegal dump probably destroyed the bridge but the council have no knowledge of this dump.

Three hours to exit the North. Interruptions in the Encumeada / Via Expresso has had serious implications on the North coast. Users of the popular túnel da Encumeada have had long detours to get to work. Commercial establishments, especially restaurants, have complained about a lack of tourists and residents from Funchal visiting Porto Moniz and São Vicente. This should improve now the link from Ribeira Brava to São Vicente opened yesterday.

From the Jornal da Madeira. In Serra de Água, President Jardim visiting the reopened road between Meia Légua and Serra de Água and chose to speak to journalists in the bar called “Poncha de Cima”.

ECONOMY

Luxury returns. With the end of the summer season in the Caribbean, mega-yachts are returning to Continental Europe. This is why during the next two months, the region will benefit from the necessary refuelling stops they need to make during the transatlantic voyages. The Elandess arrives at Funchal at 2.30 today and stays until the end of tomorrow. The Elandess comes from St. Martin and is going to the Mediterranean for the spring / summer season. This private yacht was built last year in Germany. It is 60 m long, 10.7 m wide and has a 3.50 m draft. Top speed is 16 knots, cruising speed 14 knots and a range of about 4,000 nautical miles. The yacht can hold 112,000 litres of fuel, 28,000 litres of portable water and accommodate 12 passengers in a master suit and 4 double cabins, serviced by a crew of 14.

POLITICS

Madeira will share the resolution with France and Spain. The Portuguese MEPs have formed a resolution calling for a series of actions by the European Commission to urgently aid the Region after the February 20th disaster. However, France and Spain were also severely affected by storms. The French and Spanish MEPs want the resolution to include their countries. This was agreed by the two major European parties, the PPE (includes the PSD and CDS) and PSE. The Liberais party wanted France included but not Spain. The PCP, part of the European United Left, wanted a resolution only for Madeira but yesterday morning, all leaders voted for the proposal of the two parties. Nuno Teixeira (PSD MEP for Madeira) thinks the inclusion of France and Spain will make the resolution stronger as it will attract more support, and will not affect the funds for any of the countries. This resolution is likely to be approved by all MEPs, urging the European Commission to adopt a set of initiatives that may prove very important for the region. The European Parliament wants the Commission to allow more flexible access to programs. The amount of funds does not change nor rules for access. Only the percentage of funding changes, for example a project might have funding for 80 – 90% rather than 70% of the cost. This means less money in other areas.

Governments agreed on measures to safeguard 3,000 – 5,000 jobs. Five measures announced after a joint meeting between the Government of the Republic and the Regional Government to safeguard jobs of companies whose business was affected or suspended because of the storm of February 20th. This is to prevent permanent closure of these firms. Neither governments have decided who will pay the loan of 185 million Euros from the European Investment Bank for rebuilding public infrastructure. João Cunha e Silva, the vice-president of the Madeiran Executive, hopes the State will pay because the Region has exhausted its borrowing capacity. This has to be decided by the Joint Committee.

Continuity of Jardim is consensual in the PSD-M. The decision of Jardim to delay leaving the leadership of the PSD and the Regional Government is thought to have the unanimous approval of the PSD, according to the Regional Secretary for the Environment and Natural Resources, Manuel Correia. He said that Jardim is the best person to lead the special task of rebuilding Madeira. The BE leader believes the decision was already made long ago and the disaster is just a reason to confirm this decision. Alberto Jardim became President of the Regional Government in 1978 and 1984 was supposed to be the limit of his leadership. This date was quickly forgotten and the next discussion about his stay was in 1996 when the limit was set at 2000. Arguments have been made for his continuity of power and the new goal was set at 2011. He is now considering staying for a few more years.

CULTURE

Madeira evoked in Paris. A tribute to Madeira marked the fashion show by Fátima Lopes in Paris. This Madeiran designer showed a strong patriotism for her native homeland and was determined to enhance the natural beauty of Madeira. She wanted to present a positive optimistic image of Madeira to the world press, after the devastation of the island. Incidentally, this Autumn / Winter 2010 / 2011 collection has for its theme, the dire consequences of global warming. Among the many accessories, including boots and shoes with 14 cm heels and very tiny bags, was the carapuça – a small hat worn by Madeiran folklore women.

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

European commissioner from Hélio comes in order to see damage – The Austrian Hahn comes at the weekend to assess the damage, talk with those who have lost their homes, and visit the hard-hit West. He will see some of the worst hit areas by helicopter.

Today’s main news headline : Public health in the hands of the citizens – Up until now, there is no evidence of problems, but the health authorities recommend attention because the risk exists. The Diário puts forward suggestions for prevention for each case. The headlined suggestions put forward include boiling tap water, even for cleaning ones teeth, and tetanus vaccinations. Wellington boots, gloves and face masks to be used in clean-up operations. Any sign of anxiety, sleeplessness, nightmares, lack of appetite, seek psychological help. Funchal Council is doing everything possible to re-establish the sewerage systems, but the Institute of Health Administration and Social Affairs (IASAÚDE) is warning people to take precautions, even though there is not yet any evidence of outbreaks of disease. Those in affected areas should even take precautions with tap water, which may have become contaminated. The sewerage systems in some areas of Funchal disappeared during the floods on 20th February 2010.

Intense rain yesterday cut the day short – The fleeing in numbers from Funchal at the same time clogged traffic. News of the forecast of heavy rain yesterday afternoon / evening panicked thousands in Funchal into leaving earlier than normal, and as a result traffic and even pedestrian movements were limited in downtown Funchal. Many left work early and headed off to schools, to collect children. The rivers of João Gomes, Santa Luzia and São João were very high with muddy water, and one could hear the sounds of rocks moving in the river beds. However, at the time of going to print last night the Diário assessed that there had been no cause for alarm. The road between Meia Légua and Serra de Água, badly damaged last month, was closed again yesterday as a precaution. Since the exceptional rain on the 20th February, I have noticed that any weather forecasts for heavy rain have been clarified with the words "but not with the intensity of 20th February", to avoid panicking people, and that was the case yesterday … and it clearly didn’t convince an understandably jumpy population.

Reconstruction exempts budget rectification – Funds from Lisbon and the European Union make sense.

In politics : Ismael resigns in the MPT [Earth party] – Ex-deputy on a collision course with Isidoro.

Jardim challenges all of the candidates to stand down in favour of Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa. "It would be the icing on the cake", said the leader of the Social democrats of Madeira. This refers to the election of a new national leader for the PSD.

The main sports / football headline today : Madeirans attack ‘National’ of the rallies – Bernardo Sousa and Vítor Sá make their debuts today in the Rally Torrié. The first test on the Portugal rally championship starts today, with a ’superspecial’.

Some pretty tricky translations on today’s front page, so don’t take anything too literally.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

Many thanks to Paul for a further episode about the mysterious ‘nail’ :

Crucifixion nail: a hoax? ARTICLE LINK

“A man buys an old building, pronounces it a nation, secedes from his country, proclaims himself Prince, conducts archaeological digs and claims to have found three Templar skeletons and a nail that may have been a venerated relic of a crucifixion. And if it was a crucifixion nail it was one of thousands available. Sounds a little sketchy.

The timeline is problematic for proving Templars were ever on Madeira. History tells us that the islands of Madeira and nearby Porto Santo were "discovered" by João Gonçalves Zarco and Tristão Vaz Teixeira, two captains in the service of Prince Henry the Navigator of Portugal, when they took refuge from a storm on Poto Santo around 1418.

But this date is about 100 years after the Templars were largely wiped out by King Philip IV of France and Pope Clement V – 1307-1315.

So if the island was discovered 100 years after the Templars disbanded then the skeletons can’t be Templars, right?

Probably. But strangely, if you were going to look for Templar relics, Madeira might be the place to do it.

There is evidence for Templar survival In Portugal. Portugal’s King Denis defied the Pope’s order to disband the Templars and simply changed the name of his knights to The Order of Christ and by 1323 had even reclaimed Templar property for the group. Denis also sheltered persecuted knights from France. By 1417, the order was run by a powerful Grand Master – you guessed it – Prince Henry the Navigator, the same man whose sailors discovered the island.

If the skeletons are real – and I haven’t seen any proof of that – it is possible they were members of the Order of Christ buried with an old Templar sword.

But there might be Templar burials there – if the Templars knew about Madeira before its supposed discovery and used it to hide out after their persecution.

The islands were known to the ancients. Pliny the Elder mentioned sailors travelling to islands that match the description of Madeira and Porto Santo in 75 AD and they appear on maps as early as 1339. This information could conceivably have been known to the the Templars.

A lonely island in the Atlantic is a pretty good place to hide. Even an imaginary one.

One of the videos from Portuguese television about the Prince and his very small country.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Prince of the Pontinha ; Railway relics ; 2 months to wait for state aid ; Climate changes

Der — Thu, 04 Mar 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Tom … "One of the last remaining objects from the railway closed during the II WW, I believe 1941. Train station with ticket kiosk on the right hand side.

"Wanted dead or alive. The one in the back is a dictator that imposes all his incompetence and immorality in the Island of Madeira, a Portugal Region …" MORE Thanks to Elaine from the East for this link. She thought I might like it, but it’s certainly a bit odd! Quite how José Sócrates can be classed as a dictator when he leads a government without an overall majority I don’t know.

Thanks to Pete for sending in this link to Don’s blog : Principality of the Pontinha While I was aware of this slightly bizarre situation, I didn’t know the prince was actively seeking to enforce his rights. Can you imagine the consequences for Madeira, Portugal, and even Europe, if he is successful?

I got my CaboTV / Zon monthly bill through this week for internet, phone, and TV, and they had knocked about 20-25% off the normal amount through a number of credits. No mention in the 3 pages of why, but I guess it is for the amount of time the services were down after the storm and flood of 20th February. I was a little surprised, as one normally has to complain and fight a little to get such things put right, so the fact that it was done voluntarily I suppose is a good sign. Some, like me, will be aware more than others that one serious loss of services during that terrible week was with mobile phones. Whilst Vodafone and Optimus managed to keep their service going, the major operator here, TMN, and its subsidiaries, failed miserably. In my case I was without a signal for the first 36 hours or so of the panic and confusion, but fortunately I and my neighbours were all safe and away from the danger areas, but tens of thousands of others all over Madeira had no way of making calls at a time in their lives when it couldn’t have been more needed. OK, it was an exceptional weather situation, but for TMN to lose grip and then take so long to recover the network, was just not acceptable, and I am still waiting for that text message from them saying "Dear Customer, sorry, but we really blew it this time". Fat chance of that. No doubt over the coming weeks there will be some stories about "if only my mobile phone was working at that time … something or somebody could have been saved". There was one story in downtown Tabua along those lines, when someone upstream managed to call downstream and warn some people in a building altogether, otherwise there could have been yet more tragedies. And maybe that was only possible because that local hero decided at some time in the past to go for a Vodafone rather than a TMN operator … will we ever know?

Luckily even without TV, it was possible to get plenty of pretty accurate and up-to-date information from the radio, Antennae One in particular. Aside from the Saturday, the actual ‘deluge day’, they really did Madeira proud and helped an enormous amount with essential information. On the Saturday itself it was a little weird, as you would be hearing some horror story, and then they would go off an play a couple of records, and come back again a while later. I suppose the shock of the situation can numb the brain a little, but they got control of the matter fairly soon.

Tobi, bless him, realised that I (as well as many others of course) had no TV for several days during and after the flooding, and we had no visual idea of the actual scale of the problems around Madeira. When the TV was restored, the news had moved to the aftermath and the clean up. Many thanks Tobi for this link to an extensive filmed news report with some staggering scenes … including the now famous Ribeira Brava duck! RTP NEWS 20 FEBRUARY 2010

EU’s new foreign policy chief, Lady Ashton appoints Portuguese diplomat Joao Vale de Almeida as EU ambassador to Washington.

The new EU ambassador to Washington Lady Ashton

“The move was criticised by France and Sweden, irked that the right-hand-man of European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso – himself Portuguese – had got the much-coveted job.”

“Lady Ashton admitted that "two or three member states" would like to have been more involved.”

‘The FT’ comments: “Mr Vale de Almeida lacks the international profile of Mr Bruton, the former Irish prime minister. But he is said to have good US contacts as a result of his experience serving as Mr Barroso’s personal representative to the G8 and G20 summits.”

From November 2004 Mr Vale de Almeida, a 52-year-old Portuguese, born in Lisbon was the head of President of the EU Commission’s José Manuel Barroso’s cabinet. Also, he was President Barroso’s permanent personal representative (or "sherpa") to the G8 and to the G20. The sources of Paul’s article: BBC article website: HERE FT article on the appointment: HERE Many thanks Paul.

Many thanks to Elaine (East) for this extra web snippet :

Dear Agony Aunt, I am 13 … Living in Portugal, send me back to England!?

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

DIÁRIO DE NOTÍCIAS : FRONT PAGE NEWS

Ribeira Brava sustained 90 million Euros of damage. The damage to municipal property in the county of Ribeira Brava amounts to 90 million Euros. This is an initial estimate of the devastation caused by the storm on the 20th February. This does not include damage to equipment and infrastructure under the direct responsibility of the Regional Government, for example regional roads, particularly the flooded express road in Serra de Água. Two parishes in Ribeira Brava, Serra de Água and Tabua, were badly affected by overflowing rivers, mudslides and landslides, resulting in damaged buildings and roads. In Serra de Água, the destruction ran throughout the length of the parish, from the Encumeada tunnel to the area called Meia Légua. In both locations, several settlements were isolated due to collapsed bridges and sections of roads. Their water supplies, sewerage and telecommunications networks were destroyed. There were also losses in the towns of Ribeira Brava and Campanário. The damage in Ribeira Brava was mainly due to flooding when the stream burst its banks and the most visible evidence is the collapsed bridge connecting Fajã da Ribeira and the partially collapsed old bridge near the church.

Instability persists. Madeira is loosing its ’shield’ against the depressions. Yesterday afternoon, the mountains and roadsides in Pico do Areeiro were white with snow. The onlookers who went to make the traditional snowman (photo) found the exit roads difficult to negotiate as the snow was mixed with rain and sleet. The Meteorological Observatory in Funchal predicts that the unstable weather will continue. This Winter, Madeira seems to have lost ‘the shield’ that protected against atmospheric depressions. Presently, the island is undergoing a cycle of two days: "It rains two days then improves," according to the Meteorologist Mafalda Morais. The depressions existed in previous years but went further north, Madeira had a ’shield’. This year, the bad weather has hit the south of the island. The surprising hail in Funchal yesterday was due to the recorded fall in temperature, caused by a depression north of Madeira.

Help to Madeira from Portugal will not arrive within two months. Jardim and Sócrates agreed on Monday a Special Law to define the special relationship between the State and the Region. This legislation will not come into force until two months time, at the earliest. In April, the Prime Minister will present the bill to Parliament. There are then a number of procedures that must be completed until the law can be published and comes in force. The only money Madeira can receive before April is the amount normally transferred from the State Budget and the Regional Law of Finances. The amount transferred from the State Budget is 204 million Euros, divided into twelfths, but a larger amount can be transferred initially then deducted later. However, the priority of both governments is to access the European Funds and international funds first, to minimize the impact of the reconstruction costs on the State Budget. The Joint Committee will have to meet and determine the cost of reconstruction, a co-responsibility to prevent the risk of accusations of inflated prices. This committee should have assessed the damage and drawn up a list of work needed by Easter. This weekend, the European Commissioner for Regional Policy will visit the island and Barroso comes on 12 – 14 April.

MADEIRA

"We want a tunnel." This is one of the points in the petition from the inhabitants of Paul do Mar and Jardim do Mar to the Regional Government. The 900 residents of these two villages in Calheta are not satisfied with the reply of Santos Costa that nothing has been decided on the issue. Local politicians are on the side of the people, the president of the Parish Council of Paul do Mar saying, "It’s now or never," with the arrival of new reconstruction money. A more secure road link has been wanted for years but a lack of funds has always been the reason cited, despite more cars and people travelling to these areas. The residents are worried about continuing landslides from the slopes above the main access road.

Traders complain about absence of tourists. The town of Ribeira Brava is now operating normally after recovering from the flood of 20th February. The majority of commercial establishments in the ‘downtown’ area reopened by the end of last week, minimum conditions of accessibility around the centre of the town have been established and most of the mud and debris surrounding the church has been removed. But local traders complain of a lack of tourists. Traditionally in the mornings, tourist buses brought excursions into the lower area of town. Last week, few tourists braved the sea front. The São Bento building, located next to the churchyard, was the worst affected by the mudslide in the ‘downtown’ area. One and a half metres of water damaged a furniture shop in the lower floor of this building. Despite 150,000 Euros of damage, the owner of ‘Móveis Estrelícia’ hopes to reopen next week. The Post Office was able to open again last Friday despite having been flooded. Many bars and restaurants were able to open last week, some remaining closed due to the absence of water. Stock has also been damaged, the bookstore / stationary shop in the Centro Comercial S. Bento lost 50,000 Euros in flooded items. So normality has returned within ten days apart from the missing morning sea front tourists.

Palheiro Estate opens an account for Madeira. Palheiro Estate has opened an account with BES bank to support victims of the storm. Account Name: "Palheiro Estate Pela Madeira", Account Number: 000836892624, NIB: 0007 0000 0083 6892 62423 or IBAN: PT50 0007 0000 0083 6892 6242 3. This Saturday, Palheiro Estate is organizing a fundraising golf tournament at Palheiro Golf, a lunch in the Restaurante Clubhouse do Palheiro Golfe, with a tombola and auction. Funds go to the Delegação da Cruz Vermelha Portuguesa da Madeira, (Red Cross). All golfers in the region are invited to take part in the tournament.

POLITICS

Venezuela is still waiting to help Madeira. Hugo Chávez, the President of Venezuela, might find out this week if Madeira will accept his offer of help. This offer was approved by the Venezuelan Government and a formal letter delivered to the Ambassador of Portugal in Venezuela, asking if help is needed. This offer was publicly announced on February 23rd. The Socialist Party of Venezuela now expects the two governments (Madeira and Portugal) to say what help they require.

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

Today’s main news headline : Trauma of the tempest send a thousand to the psychologist. The requests for support comes from residents of affected areas and the rescuers. The demand has stabilized but the Department of Mental Health admits to a new ‘peak’. Signs such as insomnia, nightmares, lack of appetite and anxiety justify care and consultations.

Bad weather returns and will worsen today and tomorrow. Rain and winds return. Although the severity doesn’t come close to what has been registered recently, Madeira is back on orange alert, and this evening between 6 and 9 pm heavy rain is expected. After Friday, an improvement in weather conditions is expected, which should last until at least next Tuesday, according to Funchal weatherman Vítor Prior. In the meantime we will see 70 km/h winds with gusts of up to 100 km/h in the high zones, and people are advised not to go to the mountains or exposed places on foot or by car.

IHM [Madeira Housing Institute] already has a solution for the [remaining] 350 homeless.

[Prime Minister] Sócrates takes the spirit of solidarity to Mozambique – After the help given to Madeira, the support to Maputo. The Diário found there a missionary from Camacha.

Escórcio retakes parliamentary leadership – Vice [president] of the leadership of the Socialist Party of Madeira, the deputy now takes on also the load that he abandoned around a year ago.

The main picture today : Embankment could provide an urban arrangement – The Equipamento Social [government department for infrastructure] admits to extending the city with the deposits caused by the storm that are now being put on the rocky coastline.

Unstable slopes concern Laranjal, where the Council of Funchal ponders removing the houses in danger.

Companies affected by the storm exempted from the contribution payments to Social Security. This is one of 5 measures implemented by the Government of Portugal to safeguard jobs.

The main sports / football headlines today : Portugal wins, but it couldn’t save itself from the boos. A 2 – 0 victory over China.

Tiago Pires donates 4,600 Euros to help Madeira. The rest of this article and photo was kindly provided by Paul. Top Portuguese surfer donates prize money to Madeira. Tiago Pires (PRT), 29, current ASP World No. 24 and Portugal’s first-ever competitor at the elite level, has pledged to donate his prize money from the Quiksilver Pro Gold Coast to help those in Madeira suffering from the tragedy. "I am donating my prize money to the Madeira island," Pires said. "There was a natural tragedy over there a few weeks ago, and it is still really bad. Madeira is an island off of Portugal and I go there a lot and I feel like it is part of me. I feel like it is part of my obligation to help. It is really far from me right now and I could not go there so this is the way I am helping. I am donating my prize money."

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

"Thought the video of Principality of Pontinha may interest you how it changed over the years" … Pete THE SMALLEST PRINCIPALITY IN THE WORLD – IN PICTURES thanks Pete, very interesting, and the guy at the end is ‘The Prince’ perhaps?

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

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Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Bridge in destruction video ; 2,000 year old nail found ; Contaminated water problems

Der — Wed, 03 Mar 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Becky … "Can anyone help and tell me what plant this is Looks like a Sweet Pea but I have never seen one with a curl in the middle before?".

This video has only just been posted on YouTube, but is the only one I have seen that captures the moment (well almost) when the bridge got badly damaged, with both walls swept away, and a wave of mud then swept into town. As for the second event, that damaged the bridge structurally, I have yet to find even a photograph yet of the tanker lorry that was washed down river from several kilometres away, and whacked into one of the supporting pillars before being torn to pieces. Compulsive but not exactly pleasant viewing! Der.

Nail from time of Christ’s crucifixion found in Madeira. A four-inch long nail thought to be one of thousands used in crucifixions across the Roman empire was discovered in Summer 2009 in a decorated box in a fort on the tiny isle of Ilheu de Pontinha, just off the coast of Madeira. Pontinha was thought to have been held by the Knights Templar, the religious order that was part of the Christian forces which occupied Jerusalem during the Crusades in the 12th century. The knights were part of the plot of Dan Brown’s best-selling novel, The Da Vinci Code. Full article / Source : Daily Telegraph

Image caption: supervisor Dilly Correia Ozard has been in Guernsey for 30 years but still has a lot of family in Madeira

Superstore in Guernsey raises £1,000 for Madeira. Guernsey does its bit for another island in trouble. Sandpiper employs around 20 Madeirans at its Checkers superstore at Admiral Park, Guernsey. HERE

Many thanks to Paul for sending these in, and the following article also.

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Madeira may redirect existing EU funds to re-build infrastructure. ‘EurActiv’ comments that Madeira is already investigating the possibility of redirecting existing EU funds to the worst-hit areas. The island already receives additional regional monies as a peripheral area, and as most of these funds are already earmarked for infrastructure projects, it should be possible to use them for rebuilding bridges, roads and running water systems in the disaster zones.

New Austrian EU Regional Policy Commissioner Johannes Hahn will come to Madeira this week and travel to the French coast soon, offering assurances that EU ‘disaster funds’ will be made available to the devastated regions.

- In specific cases The Solidarity Fund can be mobilised even if the threshold is not met. According to the Commission, the Solidarity Fund may only be called upon once a certain threshold has been reached – in Portugal’s case, it is set at €958 million worth of damage. First estimates from the Portuguese authorities show that the damage would exceed this threshold. In specific cases, however, the Fund can be mobilised even if the threshold is not met. The affected areas have 10 weeks to submit an application, though as French EU Minister Pierre Lellouche was quick to point out, the Solidarity Fund cannot be used for damages to private property.

- The European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF): background. The European Union Solidarity Fund (EUSF), which was set up in 2002, allocates emergency aid to member states and applicant countries which have been struck by a major natural disaster. Its annual budget is €1 billion. Since 2002, the Commission has received 69 applications for financial assistance from the Fund, of which 33 led to the granting of financial support totalling more than €2.15 billion. Catastrophes are considered to be "major” if the estimated direct cost of damage exceeds three billion Euros or 0.6% of gross national income of the member state concerned. Portugal was granted aid from the EUSF in the wake of the forest fires which occurred in the summer of 2003. On that occasion it received €48.5 million.

- Madeira benefits from a reinforced support (additional funding) from Cohesion Policy as it is one of the EU’s seven "outermost regions" with a specific status recognised in the EU Treaty to take into account their specific geographic situation and their insularity. France received €109 million in 2009 when the Landes region was hit by Hurricane Klaus.

- Positions. "Europe is expected to come to the aid of those countries affected by the violent storms this weekend, who must let the European Commission know exactly what they need to get through this disaster so that European solidarity can be as efficient as possible", said French centre-right MEP Joseph Daul yesterday. "If the European Union was effective in Haiti, as it will also, I am sure, be in Chile, its duty is also to work to address the most urgent needs of those Europeans themselves affected by such a violent storm," he added. This article has been written by Paul adapted from the Euractiv article.

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Many thanks to Elaine (East) for these web snippets :

Is this true? …Pilot whales off Madeira, in the Atlantic, have been known to drag swimmers down to the depths, apparently heedless of their need for air … KILLER WHALE INTERVIEW

Madeira visitor’s blog : FIRST SECOND

Elaine out West sent this in, from yesterday’s Diário de Notícias … many thanks.

Care still needed with regard to water. Several people have come to the hospital with gastrointestinal complaints. In recent days several people have come to the Emergency Service of Hospital Dr. Nelio Mendonça with gastrointestinal symptoms such as vomiting and diarrhoea. The situation was foreseen by the regional authorities, since, due to the storm of 20 February, the water supply network suffered disruptions, causing the contamination. It was for this reason that, in the first announcements made by the Government to the population, calls were made for water to be boiled before consumption. To reinforce the importance of taking care of the water, the Institute of Health Administration and Social Affairs (IASAÚDE) has created an information pamphlet in which are described and recommended some measures for water treatment. Maurício Melim, president of IASAÚDE, told the DIÁRIO on behalf of the Water Management (GEF) that he has been assured that the water of Funchal is of good quality. However, in areas that were most affected by the storm, such as the uplands of Funchal, as well as in Ribeira Brava and Ponta do Sol, where some problems were identified, there is a continued risk of contamination. "It is better to take preventative measures, which means that water should be boiled for 10 minutes before being consumed,“ he stated. This care should be reinforced in the case of children, the elderly and people with chronic diseases, who are usually more fragile, Maurício Melim warned.

How to treat drinking water. Wash salads, fruit or other foods that are consumed raw, and only drink water boiled for at least 10 minutes. If boiling is impossible, added bleach to it on the following scale: one litre of water to two drops of bleach, a gallon of water to ten drops of bleach. The water, whether boiled or treated with bleach, should be stored in a clean container (for example, a bottle with a capacity of five litres) so it can be used more easily. It is not necessary to boil or disinfect water that is intended for cooking food or cleaning teeth.

Nacional played their rescheduled football match against Belenenses yesterday afternoon, after it was postponed on Monday night due to thick fog in Choupana. Our lads managed a 1 – 0 win, ending a poor run of results, and leaving them in equal 6th position in the Portuguese premier league.

Many thanks to Elaine of the East once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

FRONT PAGE NEWS

People are the high priority. Alberto João Jardim and José Sócrates met for more than two hours yesterday in Lisbon to set a plan for dealing with the damage caused by the disaster that struck Madeira. José Sócrates welcomed a framework of cooperation and presented the three areas that Funchal and Lisbon will work hard on: homeless, economy and reconstruction of public infrastructure. "This operation of great urgency aims to restore living conditions for the homeless." The plan is also to help the recovery of the affected economy and help private enterprises recover their businesses. The Prime Minister also considered it important to recover the destroyed public infrastructure. There will be a joint committee established between both governments which will rigorously examine what can be done in all three areas: what is needed, the work that is needed and its financial cost. In the case of homelessness, new homes will only be supplied to those in need. There were 400 homes damaged by the storm and those that need cleaning, will be cleaned. In terms of businesses, cheques will be distributed to revitalise the economy. There are already credit lines established for traders. From today, there will also be help with paying wages. In the case of infrastructure, international means will be a key pillar for the reconstruction. The priority is the water infrastructure and the coast. The European Investment Bank has approved a loan of 240 million Euros for the reconstruction of public infrastructure, for 75% of the cost. Using the Solidarity Fund is another option. Sócrates says he will resort to all means. Over the next three years, the financial relationship between the two governments will be under a Special Law which will replace the Regional Finance Law for the period of reconstruction. The Regional Finance Law is not affected and will be voted on in March. The Prime Minister said this is because extraordinary circumstances require extraordinary measures. "It would be pointless if Madeira can only count on the support from the Government resulting from the new Regional Finance Law." Not so long ago, he found increased transfers to the Region were unaffordable and a negative sign but times have changed. The opposition parties all seem pleased and in agreement with this arrangement.

Century-old bridge will disappear. The Mayor of Ribeira Brava believes the century-old bridge at Ribeira Brava, opposite the church, is not recoverable after structural damage during flooding on February 20th. This iconic bridge was once the only access to the southwest coast of the island. The decision to demolish and replace it will not be taken until after further evaluation. The water in the stream underneath pounded and overflowed this bridge until the structure finally gave way and it was partially destroyed. The council have a special telephone help line for those affected by the storm, for help and advice about damage to buildings, belongings and agricultural land.

Trinidade offers to Madeira a Flower Festival campaign. Bernardo Trinidade, the State Secretary for Tourism, has instructed Turismo de Portugal to allow Madeira to enter late proposals for the PIT program, for promoting the Flower Festival to the domestic market. The deadline for submissions was last October but there is still 150,000 Euros in funding available. This exceptional measure is because of downturn in demand in the hotel and regional economy at times of high activity, Easter and the Flower Festival. As well as financial support, the promotional ‘machine’ of Tourismo de Portugal will be available. Yesterday, a delegation of the Portuguese Association of Travel Agents and Tourism and eight journalists visited the region, with the cooperation of TAP. The recovery of Madeira and promoting the Flower Festival to the domestic market were the aims. Madeira is a focus for this association as there is a meeting in Lisbon next week for European tour operators and associations, so this organization will be able to speak about the recovery of this island.

MADEIRA

Population in Achada in despair. About 30 people living in Achada in Curral das Freiras are in despair as there have been no visits to help or assess the damage and support needed, since the tragedy. The criticism is towards the Regional Government, Municipal Council and Parish Council. Although close to the centre of Curral das Freiras, this area is difficult to access and many children missed the beginning of the school week yesterday. There are four other areas difficult to access from the centre. There are still fears of mudslides and landslides in Achada.

Pilot study for Census 2011 transferred to Santana. As there have been many regions of Ribeira Brava affected by the storm on February 20th, the pilot survey for the Census 2011 is now to be carried out in Santana.

ECONOMY

Children fly free on TAP flights. TAP will launch a solidarity campaign with Madeira that provides free tickets for children under 12 years old, accompanied by their parents, flying from the Continent to Madeira. The campaign runs from April 12th to May 31st. There is not a fixed number of seats reserved for this campaign as it will depend on demand but it is assured there will be a considerable number. TAP will also assist journalists and tour operators from the United Kingdom, Spain, Italy and Russia, so they can evaluate the recovery of the island. Members of the Victoria campaign can donate their air miles which will be converted to funds for the recuperation of Madeira.

Madeirans were stranded on board the Island Escape. A group of Madeirans who made a cruise between the Canary Islands and Madeira on February 15th, had a choice of staying free for another 7 nights or returning by flight. They were due to return on February 22nd but this was cancelled due to security as many streets were being cleaned and restored. Five couples declined the free cruise extension as they were anxious to return. Due to the bad weather, the ship could not stop at Agadir and only stayed at Lanzarote long enough to pick up passengers. Instead, the ship sailed between Tenerife and Las Palmas four times.The option to continue on board for an extra week meant that passengers could visit Agadir and the three Canary Islands before a difficult return journey in rough seas to Funchal.

POLITICS

New mandate of Jardim is not surprising. The confirmation of the continuity of Alberto Jardim as the head of the Regional Government and the PSD after 2011, seems almost a formality. Some of the most influential leaders of the party were not surprised by his statement that he is reconsidering leaving. Miguel Mendonça, president of the Legislative Assembly, has always advocated Jardim remaining in power and says that the reconstruction of Madeira might be a factor in this important decision. He said he is of the same generation as Jardim and is grateful for what he has done and maybe he is "mais albertista". Miguel Sousa, vice-president of the Legislative Assembly, also agrees with this decision, "I thought so in times of peace, much more I believe in times of crisis."

CULTURE

Cultural Agenda of DRAC is outdated. The Cultural Agenda of DRAC for March, published yesterday, does not include changes due to the aftermath of the flood. These are after the flooding of the Municipal Theatre and include the postponement of some plays, exhibitions and concerts. Some other concerts are not guaranteed, for example those by the OCM at the Casino.

Gala raised half a million Euros. The Portuguese pledged 526,000 Euros to help the victims of the flood. The gala event in Lisbon was organized by SIC television channel and was broadcasted live.

Taken from today’s Journal da Madeira. Best wishes to you all. Waterbaby.

FIRST MODULE OF THE BRIDGE FOR FAJÃ DA RIBEIRA, RIBEIRA BRAVA HAS ARRIVED!

The first of several modules of a bridge for Fajã da Ribeira, Ribeira Brava arrived yesterday at around 18.15 hours, by a C-130 Hercules transport aircraft of the Portuguese Air force. Assembly of the bridge modules will be carried out by army engineers who arrived on the same flight. This flight also included a Lieutenant-General of the Portuguese Army, Amaral Vieira, who came to learn of the help that the army has provided to the region following the floods. In a brief interview Lt-General Vieira said ‘I know what the staff of the 3rd Regiment of the Military Zone of Madeira has done, and I want to congratulate them for the excellent work they have carried out’.

Lt-General Vieira stated that the bridge is split into 3 sections prior to final assembly. The first section arrived yesterday and today two additional flights by C-130 transport aircraft arriving in Madeira at 11.30 and 13.30 hours, whereupon the sections will be transported and assembled on site. Weather permitting the assembly will take 24 hours to complete, with the bridge being capable of supporting up to 22 tonne loads.

For the return flight to the Mainland, the transport aircraft took aboard 10 elements of firefighters from Lisbon, as well as elements of the Navy (Marines) and equipment such as the large capacity pumps loaned by firefighters and the Port of Lisbon, that were used to empty the basements of some buildings. Many thanks Waterbaby. I can’t find the exact location of this on my very expensive map, or through the internet, but I believe this is the bridge that will open up the road to Serra d’Água again?

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

Madeira is losing anti-storm ’shield’ – The island is more vulnerable to the bad weather.

The instability continues this Winter.

Hail stones whitened the mountain ranges and arrived in Funchal.

Today’s main news headline : Damages of €90 million in Ribeira Brava – The initial calculations of the Council don’t include damaged equipment [infrastructure] of the Regional Government within the area of responsibility, such as the roads.

Governments give priority to the European Funds – [president] Jardim and [prime minister] Sócrates seek to minimise expenses in the state budget. Nacional funds will not arrive before May.

Regional Government wants to re-house the displaced population [through the floods] up until the end of March. 350 people are currently staying in the holding centres. There were 600 people without homes, and 350 still remain in that position, mostly from Funchal, Ribeira Brava, Santa Cruz and Câmara de Lobos. I asked an official from the (family) court in Funchal about this yesterday, curious to know what guarantees Feliz Abreu from Pomar da Rocha would have, as it seems the government takes responsibility for re-housing those who have been made homeless. He said that there are no guarantees, and each case is judged on it’s own merits, based mainly on the circumstances of an individual after the event. So for example, if someone had another home, or relatives that could offer accommodation, the government would not help. The issue of whether the person had failed to take out buildings insurance or not (to have a property repaired or rebuilt) does not seem to be an issue, as it is recognised that such insurance is just too expensive for many, and besides that many policies exclude liability for ‘an act of god’, as was seen last month.

Gil Rosa Director of content on RTP Madeira. An interview with the man chosen to direct the information content for public television and radio.

Martim Santos new director of RTP Madeira – Gil Rosa moves to lead the Department of Information. The news about Martim seems to have exited Diário readers today, with mixed reactions to the appointment. 16 comments posted already (2 pm). Some readers think that there is nepotism, or perhaps favouritism, in play. Who would of thought that could happen on Madeira?

The main sport / football headline today : Nacional achieves it’s first win in 2010 – The goal of João Aurélio defeated Belenenses (1 – 0) and strengthens the position of the alvinegros for a European position. The Portugal v China friendly game, or rather a World Cup 2010 warm-up match, is live on TVI (channel 4) tonight at 8.45 pm. The under 21’s also play Wales today, with live coverage on TVI at 2.55 pm.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

I have been sent a computer virus warning, and whilst normally I would just bin it, this one actually comes from the Portuguese police. It is a video called "Aneis Durex", and although it arouses my curiosity at least, it apparently reformats your hard drive and sends the virus to your contacts, so don’t open it.

The blog software upgrade attempted today failed. As a result another attempt will be made tomorrow morning, but is expected to take longer, and so access to the blog will be not be possible during the work. Sorry for any inconvenience.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Flood recovery progress update ; Mixed reaction in Jersey ; Funchal at night on video

Der — Tue, 02 Mar 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Tom … Family Blandy quinta high above Funchal surrounded by a very beautiful garden

February blog visitors : I normally do a quick run down after the end of each month of the blog visitors, and February is normally a low viewing month, partly due to only having 28 days. But something happened a week or so ago that made it the highest month ever for visitor numbers, and on Sunday 21st it peaked at nearly 5,000 visits. Then for 7 consecutive days the number decreased, as the flood and tragedy stories came off the ‘front pages’ and the initial interest wore off, and also as the search engines gave priority to large media organisations on the search engine listings. For the month as a whole there were over 32 thousand visits from 124 countries.

My apologies for the delay in posting some items, it was a really busy ‘full up’ type of week, but I should catch up by Wednesday.

Many thanks to Elaine (East) for these web snippets :

Update from the Jersey press. Comments to this post are interesting. HERE Indeed they are Becky, some quite hostile. For sure if there was a disaster in Jersey, it would be reported. I guess there would be some support from Madeira, but whether it would be the spending sort I don’t know, especially after what happened over East Timor. Der

On a happier note, from an American finance site. Just Launched The Magic of Madeira Lifestyle & property magazine. …..According to the Portuguese National Tourist Office and the Portuguese Chamber of Commerce in the UK, health and wellbeing tourism is on the rise across Europe and is predicted to increase by 5-10% by 2015. This is significant as at a major conference on the topic held at the beginning of November, Madeira has been highlighted for its potential in this increasing market … MORE

Now for something different. Politics of the Crypt. Facing the Future with the Habsburg Dead …..What should be done, for example, with the monstrous copper coffin standing around uselessly at Vienna’s Central Cemetery? It was originally meant for Emperor Charles I, but he was buried in Madeira, where he was forced into exile. Since his beatification in 2004, the emperor’s resting place on the island has drawn more tourists than ever before. The autonomous Portuguese archipelago declines to transfer the tomb to the Imperial Crypt in Vienna … MORE

Many thanks to Becky for these videos :

A guided view around the city of Funchal at night, by a man with a very nice voice (para mim, a good enough reason to learn Portuguese right there!) and good to hear the familiar sound of some dogs barking.

Lovely compilation of footage and stills from Santa Cruz.

Government communication policy on the floods after the 28th February :

Piece adapted by Paul from this page to improve the translation: SOURCE … Many thanks Paul.

On the 28th February, after 8 days of reports the last official Report was published. The aim of the Reports was to inform everyone in Madeira and the National and International press.

From the 28th February, each Regional Secretary will report, individually on the progress of their department’s responsibilities after the floods

SOLIDARITY: Madeira has received from all over the world pledges of solidarity. The Regional Government is deeply grateful for them.

PROGRESS: the main concern and priority of the regional authorities is to support Madeira’s people and the replacement of all land communications safely, especially those to the most remote locations. The cleaning and restoration works have been taking place at an accelerated pace, with two of the three rivers that overflowed in Funchal already back running down their normal routes.

From the beginning, the Regional Civil Protection Services, local authorities, Fire Departments, Health Services, Social Services coordinated their tasks in order to get closer to the population and help meet their needs.

Funchal’s main Hospital received 120 wounded people. 70 were hospitalized. Now there are only 16 still receiving treatment.

Madeirans that were reallocated temporarily are being supported by the Regional Government and they will return to their homes when it is possible, or the Government will build new houses for them.

RETURNING TO NORMAL:

On the 1st of March, most accesses to Funchal were back open.

Schools will be open and operating normally.

TOURISM:

The hotel industry of Madeira was not affected by the floods and maintains all operating conditions safely. Hotel establishments are operational with all their facilities. Both Madeira’s International Airport and The Harbour of Funchal have been operational since the floods too.

Sorry to repeat this from yesterday’s blog comments, but I am hoping some international media company will pick up on this if it is actually posted on the blog itself.

I guess most blog readers now know the story about the family of 8 living in Pomar da Rocha, that was almost totally wiped out in a landslide here on 20th February.

The one survivor is a young man (some conflicting reports about his exact age, but around 19), who lost the other 7 members of his family, and is currently still in hospital, having had some digits amputated (again some conflicting reports on how many). He is due out of hospital this week, to face a stark reality of making a new start with no family, no home, and no possessions, and whether he will be able to continue to work as a result of his injuries I don’t know (he was juggling education whilst working at the petrol station by the via rápida in Ribeira Brava).

Feliz Abreu’s school in Ribeira Brava is trying to raise some money to get him started, and help him find a new home, and to buy him clothes, as he has absolutely nothing. There is another fund raising effort in Ribeira Brava where friends and locals are also putting what they can spare towards a fund to help Feliz.

I am posting this as a blog contributor, not in any other capacity, so this has nothing to do with the blog itself. But if anyone is able to help / contribute then the PayPal button on the right of this page can be used, and if you can mark in the comments box FELIZ, then I will ensure any money is passed on. I can also provide my bank account details [€ / £]. If PayPal is not an option for anyone. You can email me if you need that information. I will send acknowledgement of any donation, by email, on request.

I can’t even begin to imagine how Feliz will cope once back in reality. I can’t even imagine how someone can possibly ever return to a normal life after what he has been through. At least if he has a home and some money and personal possessions he will have a chance to try. Thanks for reading this.

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

DIÁRIO 01/03/2010

FRONT PAGE NEWS

Eight shops and restaurants of the marina will be demolished. The refurbishment of the marina will start immediately. It was due to start in 2011 but the decision by the Harbour Administrators (APRAM) has been brought forward. The safety of restaurants and shops and their users determined the urgency of the intervention. The water that infiltrated the original wall of the Avenida do Mar created sheets that ran through the walls and ceilings of these buildings. Postponed several times, the redevelopment of the marina should be in conjunction with the redevelopment of the Avenida do Mar and the remodelling of the dry area of the Marina of Funchal, including the transfer of fuel tanks. The total cost to APRAM will be 5 million Euros. About 100 employees of these enterprises will be made redundant. The loss of revenue when access to the marina is banned is estimated at 15,000 – 20,000 Euros per day. None of the businesses have insurance for operating losses. The Beer House has had enormous losses in the kitchen, office and stocks and looses a few thousand Euros each day it cannot open.

Fall in revenue can reach 20 million Euros. The devastating effects of the disaster. In addition to losses arising from damage to property, equipment and goods, which meant that more than 900 businesses had to close, the effects of loss of revenue will cause the unemployment of hundreds of Madeirans. Traders point out that lack of sales / revenue is responsible for 20% of the cost of the damage caused by the storm. If the business associations say that private businesses take a loss of 100 million Euros, commerce will loose 20 million Euros of revenue in the coming months. Some shops are about to reopen but others in different parts of the island will be affected for several months, with particular emphasis on the municipalities of Ribeira Brava and São Vicente, which might be taken off major tour itineraries. There are dozens of companies that will not reopen in the short term as they are not insured for the losses. The two supermarkets of Pingo Doce loose 60,000 – 70,000 Euros per day. The destruction to Pingo Doce shops in Anadia and Dolce Vita costs 20 million Euros with 4 million Euros lost in expected sales revenue. Two hundred people are employed in these two stores. The Government of the Republic has a 50 million Euros line of support with grants of 50% for small firms to replace their property and equipment, with a million Euros to help the unemployed.

MADEIRA

Group of London solidarity. The folklore group of the Portuguese Cultural and Sports Centre in London left yesterday for Oman in the Middle East to entertain a group of businessmen. The organization Dansakat will hold a gala dinner today for directors of a company and hope to have traditional music from all of the countries where the directors are based, including Portugal. The chairman of the Sports Centre told the newspaper reporter that they are trying to raise funds in Oman for Madeira, to help the victims of the tragedy. On 7th March, there will be a solidarity dinner to raise funds in London, at a cost of 15 pounds per person. The space for the dinner in Brixton is given free by Lambeth Council and food and drink will be donated by several Portuguese companies. The area can accommodate 400 – 600 so the organizers hope to attract hundreds of Portuguese immigrants.

Initial estimates. The local authorities are beginning to estimate the cost of Saturday’s storm. The Regional Government estimate 1.4 billion Euros. In Funchal, Miguel Albuquerque said the storm caused damage of more than 198 million Euros. Ribeira Brava, the mayor talks of about 90 million Euros of damage to roads and bridges, water supply, sanitation and housing. In Santana, the mayor estimates a loss of 3.5 million Euros and in Machico, 2.5 million Euros of damage. 25 million Euros in Santa Cruz but only 70,000 Euros in Porto Moniz. In Calheta, 4 million Euros of damage to municipal infrastructure alone and 3 million Euros worth in Ponta do Sol.

POLITICS

Jardim will rethink leaving the Regional Government in 2011. The disaster that befell the region might make Alberto Jardim reconsider his intention to relinquish power in 2011, but he would prefer a middle way. If things were running normally, he would leave in 2011 but what has befallen Madeira is very complicated. He admits a new solution: leave the government but continue to be politically active.

Left Bloc leader praises the prompt response of the Regional Government. The national leader of the Left Bloc visited Madeira, where in an unprecedented manner, he made in public his praise for the prompt response of the Regional Government to the effects of the storm of 20th February. He said this disaster should serve as a lesson to impose strict rules on urban planning to maintain the security of the inhabitants. In the process, the views of urban planners, environmentalists and scientific authorities who know the difficulties of the region need to be heard. "What happened on Saturday was a disaster of calamitous proportions, a deluge. The damages were unavoidable but they were exacerbated by urban issues."

CDS propose post-storm measures. The regional leader of the CDS-PP said it is a time for convergence rather than divergence and for unity instead of division. He said, "The main cause of the disaster, the torrential rains, are historically known." In Madeira there was a "lack of rigorous planning and land management, improper occupation of land, construction on the banks and beds of streams, lack of clearing of many streams throughout the region, dumping of debris on land and in water courses, insufficient reforestation of serras, lack of clearing of trees and woods destroyed by fires and lack of consolidation of many escarpments, these are causes that amplify the natural disaster." After learning from these mistakes, it is necessary to make decisions and courageous interventions in the field of spatial (territorial) planning.

UPDATE

"This is a superior people." Jardim was not surprised at the speed of cleaning, saying, "This is a superior people." He was speaking at the end of Sunday Mass celebrated in memory of the victims of the storm of February 20th. At the end of Mass, the Mayor of Funchal highlighted the fibre of people accustomed to overcome many adversities. Also present, Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said he was impressed with the progress of work and the solidarity of the country, which he has not seen since Timor, for eleven years. In celebration of the Eucharist, the Bishop of Funchal called the faithful to keep hope alive. He pointed to the recovery of the crucifix and statue of the Imaculada Conceição da Capela das Babosas, the chapel destroyed by the flood of February 20th, "as real signs of consolation and hope for our people."

Sócrates says this is not the time for recriminations and disputes. The Prime Minister argued on Sunday that the priority is to ensure a framework for cooperation and financial links with the Regional Government to allow the rapid reconstruction of Madeira, saying this is a moment of solutions instead of recriminations and disputes. José Sócrates said about the situation in Madeira, that currently the primary duty is the cooperation between the Government of the Republic and the Regional Government of Madeira. He declined to make any controversial comments on the Regional Finance Law, which was passed in Parliament by opposition parties, stating it is not connected to the State Budget – voting scheduled for mid-March - and both executives will provide solutions to resolve all political issues that may hamper cooperation. It is urgent to rebuild the region for the rapid return of life and the economy back to normal. Asked if this is a positive signal to Alberto Jardim, he said, "Yes, of course." He said it is important for Madeirans to know there is national solidarity. The whole nation needs the recovery of Madeira’s economy and for it to contribute to the national economy.

Special Law for Madeira. Early report from today’s meeting between the President of the Regional Government and the Prime Minister, José Sócrates. The Regional Government and the Government of the Republic agreed the creation of an Extraordinary Law that will be approved by the Assembly of the Republic, for the situation in Madeira. There will be three priorities for action: help the homeless, boost the economy and rebuild the affected infrastructure.

This story / link was sent in by both Paul and Tom … many thanks. Recovering Madeira Tries to Restart Tourism Industry. "The local government did a very good job of cleaning up," Mr. Becker said. "We’ll be back next year, for sure." “A week after torrential rains and mudslides killed 42 people and left 17 missing on Madeira, government officials are trying to restart the tourism business that is vital to the Atlantic island’s economy.

Tourism marketing after a natural disaster. It won’t be easy. Tourism marketing after a natural disaster is problematic because officials need to be careful not to appear insensitive toward the victims while also letting potential visitors know that it is safe to come.

Cleanup crews and local utilities have made rapid progress in removing mud and debris from the streets of Funchal, the capital, and restoring water, power and telecommunications services. Work continues in the worst-affected areas of Funchal, where some underground parking lots that had been flooded are still being drained. Other parts of the island that were hit harder, such as the town of Ribeira Brava, will require more extensive cleanup and reconstruction efforts.

Tourism represents 20% of the economy of this Portuguese autonomous region, located more than 600 miles west of the European mainland. It employs 7,000 people in the hotel sector alone, out of a total population of 245,000. Most of the tourists come from Britain, Germany and Portugal, according to official figures.

"People have seen so much on television about this disaster that it might discourage them from going," says Angelo Rossini, a research analyst for London-based Euromonitor. At the same time, he says, "respect for the dead can also be an issue. It might be a problem to get people to go for sun and vacation so soon after the tragedy."

Conceição Estudante, the regional government’s secretary-general for tourism and transport, said last week that the government had started reconstruction efforts. Local hotel operators, travel agents and tour operators are contacting tourists who had reservations, as well as potential new visitors.

The images of destruction have led to hundreds of cancellations at island hotels, said Ricardo Rodrigues, manager of the Funchal Design hotel, in the centre of the capital, and of another hotel in the hills behind the city.

"There should be a time of mourning, but everyone realizes that life has to go on," he said.

Tourists who were in Madeira during the storm have applauded the government’s response to the disaster.

Joachim Becker, a 60-year-old environmental-health and medicine worker from Essen, Germany, said he and his wife rode out the storm in a small villa outside the capital.”

“There was mud everywhere, including in the pool, but they say the storm won’t stop them from returning.”

"The local government did a very good job of cleaning up," Mr. Becker said. "We’ll be back next year, for sure." FULL ARTICLE FROM THE WALL STREET JOURNAL

Also this one from Paul … 9,845 Euros (13,290 U.S. dollars) for Madeira! The Chinese Chamber of Commerce in Portugal raised at a night gala a total of 9,845 Euros (13,290 U.S. dollars) for Madeira : SOURCE

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

Chaos clogs a restricted Funchal – The citizens weren’t very cooperative and the city was swamped in the morning and early afternoon. It was as expected apparently, with appeals from the authorities to use other means of transport for getting to ones destination being ignored by many.

Facilities provided for those who lost their car.

The hundred+ year old bridge in Ribeira Brava at risk of collapse. I have found a stunning video of the pounding of this bridge on 20th February, and will include it on tomorrows blog.

Culture with a schedule out of step with the reconstruction.

Today’s main news headline : Commitment assumed and it just remains to be fulfilled – Meeting of the new buddies [prime minister] Sócrates and [president] Jardim went well. Joint committee will define support for homes, damage and businesses. A sight for sore eyes indeed. I can only hope that this forced ’solidarity’ between these two powerful men who run Portugal and Madeira will last long beyond the current crisis. Great photo, and the words spoken are most certainly along the lines of "vai primeiro senhor", … "não, não, vai você, se faz favour", but who spoke first I have no idea.

Exceptional law for Madeira – Agreement between Sócrates and Jardim. The President of the Regional Government met with the prime minister for more than two hours.

SRRH reinforces placement of unemployed in the market – Workers keep unemployment benefit increased by 25% from SMN, and food and transport subsidies.

Numbers of missing persons don’t add up – The official website of the regional government maintains that there are still seven people yet to be found. But an unofficial list maintains that there are 14 names of missing people that the families and the authorities are still trying to trace.

Continentals are the target of a campaign for holidays on Madeira – Tourism of Portugal offers publicity for the Flower Festival.

The main sport / football headline today : The Nacional [v Belenenses] game was put back until this afternoon. Thick fog made the game scheduled in the Choupana last night impossible to play.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

PLEASE NOTE : There is a blog software upgrade being done tomorrow morning, so it will be ‘out of service’ and inaccessible for a short while.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

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Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

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Return of the first cruise ship ; British tourists tell of ordeal ; Why the floods happened

Der — Mon, 01 Mar 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to … Pete : "Funchal first cruse liner waiting to dock since disaster. Thought you may like it not docked yet". The AIDAluna of course, and a nice way to start the week in a positive way, with some signs of normality returning. Der

From Tobi by email : "I haven’t put this on the blog as i think Madeira has had enough bad news over the last week, But if you think people should know then I’m happy for you to post.

My best friend from Caniço went to Funchal for a drink around 10.30 pm Thursday night, as he travelled through São Martinho a large rock hit the underneath of his car, he stopped to have a look, he was approached by a man who held a knife to his throat and told him to get in the car and drive up the road, up the road 4 other men were waiting , they robbed him of money, jewellery and mobile phone. He was not hurt but of course very shaken, he drove straight back home to contact police.

I’m quite shocked about this, and i would guess the rock was left in the road or thrown underneath the car on purpose so these people can select who they rob, as he has a nice car. I guess he was lucky he is on a small island, ’cause if it had happened on mainland the car would have gone too. I remember back home Gipsy’s used to leave things in quiet roads, so people would have to stop to remove the obstruction and then they would rob them, I just hope this is not a new crime starting here. Thanks Tobi … and I think people should be aware, so you have been advised! Der

Many thanks to Elaine (East) for these web snippets :

A geological explanation of why the floods happened. …The city centre sits on slightly sloped ground, while outer suburbs perch on the mountain slopes around the city. On February 19-20, 2010, when heavy rain poured down on the island, the high suburbs suffered mudslides and floods. As this map illustrates, the slopes around Funchal surround the city in a semicircle, so water flowing down the mountains was concentrated in the bowl where the city is located. The devastating floods killed at least 42 with 18 still missing as of February 23, according to the government of Madeira … MORE

The great Madeira cleanup. Secretary General of the UN World Tourism Organization Taleb Rifai comments on the hotel and Tourism industry after the recent natural events in Madeira… "The quick response action undertaken by the competent authorities at local and national levels, together with the support of the EU, have been instrumental in this catastrophe. The city centre sits on slightly sloped ground, while outer suburbs perch on the mountain slopes around the city. On February 19-20, 2010, when heavy rain poured down on the island, the high suburbs suffered mudslides and floods. As this map illustrates, the slopes around Funchal surround the city in a semicircle, so water flowing down the mountains was concentrated in the bowl where the city is located. The devastating floods killed at least 42 with 18 still missing as of February 23, according to the government of Madeira … MORE

A one minute Euronews video. The cleanup operation has begun on Madeira after the floods and landslides that ravaged the Portuguese island last week. VIDEO

Many thanks to Becky for these videos / web snippets :

When looking at the Costa Serena gliding into Funchal, you don’t imagine that it could leak. Another reason I don’t go on cruises.

Only 9 seconds, but something good to watch when stuck anywhere other than Madeira.

Many thanks to Paul for this useful information x 3 :

Roads back open on the 28^th Feb (Funchal) :

· Campo da Barca Bridge.

· Rua do Carmo to Rua do Oudinot

· Jaime Moniz High School to Carmo Bridge

Bridge closed temporarily

·The bridge near Lavradores Market will be closed for cleaning

Source: Official Report from Regional Government of Madeira – 28/02/2010

It was a one off event, a catastrophe that isn’t likely to happen again, and one that the island will soon recover from says British victim

Roger and Gillian Wilson, British holidaymakers, have spoken for the first time of the ordeal they endured when the taxi in which they were travelling between hotels with another British couple was hit by a mudslide.

He praised the emergency services on Madeira and hoped that tourists would not be put off coming to the island because of the recent tragedy.

"It is a wonderful place and the people of Madeira have been truly fantastic. It was a one off event, a catastrophe that isn’t likely to happen again, and one that the island will soon recover from," insisted Mr Wilson.

"Tourism is the life-blood of Madeira and I really hope people will be sensible enough to realise that it is still worth coming here – we will definitely be back for another holiday," he said. Source: Telegraph Newspaper

Paul do Mar collects for flood victims

Paul do Mar’s inhabitants have been collecting food items for flood victims all week. The initiative has been led by a young soldier in the village and supported by the Paul do Mar Casa do Povo. The leaders are hoping to get an army truck here today on Sunday to transport it to Funchal for distribution. If an army truck is not available it will go to Funchal in private trucks soon.

Another email from Tobi : "I have a new set of photos on Flickr. The big clean up has been going on for a week now round the island , and I’m totally amazed at how fast it has happened. See the clean up pics here

Many thanks to Elaine once again for yesterday’s top news stories :

DIÁRIO 28/02/2010

FRONT PAGE NEWS

Diário honours the victims and the heroes. A photographic record of those who died and those involved in the rescue. Today’s magazine also has a 26 page photographic record of the disaster. Both available on-line. THE VICTIMS THE PHOTOS

Men and machines go to Serra de Água. By the end of today, the dredging of the streams in Funchal should be completed. The Regional Government has asked the construction companies to transfer their workforce and machinery to start an immediate large-scale intervention in Serra de Água. Only the mouth of the ribeira de São João still requires intervention. This was the most complex job as almost 300 metres were totally clogged with stones and other inert materials, forcing the water to divert into the tunnel and causing serious problems in the area of São Lázaro. The staff of Tâmega have worked 24 hours a day since last Sunday to ensure the safety of the city. The ribeiras of Santa Luzia and João Gomes have been cleared and just areas of walls need to be reconstructed. When this phase has been concluded, the excavators and lorries, more than 100 of each, will start constructing the tunnel between Meia Légua and Serra d’Água in Ribeira Brava. This tunnel will cost around 40 million Euros. They will also need to attend to the main stream in the area, channelling it where necessary. Over the past seven days, 200,000 cubic metres of stones and other debris have been removed from the three streams in Funchal. The inert material (gravel) is worth more than half a million Euros in the commercial market. The Regional Government has made no decision about the fate of the recovered material – inerts and mud. At present, builders do not require inert material and transportation costs are high – 13,000 trips would be needed to move the entire stock. The fate of the roundabout at Dolce Vita has not been decided. The machinery started clearing the streams on the Saturday afternoon (20th February) despite the intense rainfall then the company increased the number of men and machinery when the gravity of the situation was realized, under the command of Santos Costa. At the end of yesterday, both Santos Costa and Alberto Jardim went to each of the streams to personally thank the employees and directors of the companies responsible for the cleaning.

Navy maintains search in Santo António. This search began last week with divers, doctors and special surveillance equipment sent to the stream and police closed the road between Rampa and Caminho do Laranjal and sealed off the area. The Navy teams are slowly working their way up stream to the bridge at the cemetery of Santo António. They are searching for the body of Manuel Nunes, a former sacristão (Sexton) of the Sé. There are also suspicions that two women have been swept away after flooding in Laranjal which lies above the stream. Bags belonging to them have been found in the reeds. Their house has been destroyed and it is thought they were trying to flee during the storm last Saturday. This is an area where there has been much destruction and many deaths, the firefighters rescued many from their houses but it is also the area where the crane used in the construction of the new cota 500 (expressway) fell. The residents fear that the other cranes are unstable, especially during the recent winds. A week is not enough time for the neighbours to mourn the losses in this area. The storm destroyed 80% of the sewerage in the high areas of this parish. The old sewerage tanks are being reactivated until the pipes can be repaired. The water supply is not affected by the sewerage problem but residents are still advised to boil it first. One of the photos is of a 14 year old who helped rescue neighbours.

MADEIRA

Since October, bad weather has been front-page news. The previous bad weather cannot parallel the tragedy of Saturday 20th February, but the weather has often made front-page news since October 2009. October 3rd, it was reported that three houses had collapsed in Funchal after heavy rainfall. October 5th, several landslides and accidents were due to rain. On October 6th, it was reported that the rainfall was abnormal compared to the past 30 years and a 300% increase over Summer. December 16th, floods and landslides and December 19th, waves, rain and wind caused damage throughout the region. 23rd December, streams overflowed at São Vicente and Madalena do Mar, and São João was without water. 24th December, houses at risk in São Vicente and four parishes of Santana without water. The promenades at Faial and Madalena were destroyed, homes and cars damaged by falling trees in Santa Cruz and flooding and landslides in Funchal and Curral das Freiras. 27th December, the bad weather had left Ponta do Sol without water. December 29th, families displaced in Monte and isolated in Serra d’Água. In 2010, 3rd February, a day and night of bad weather caused chaos throughout Madeira, particularly in Santana and Porto da Cruz and areas of Machico were left unrecognizable. February 16th, the sea caused damage and on February 18th, it was reported that the sea had engulfed many coastal infrastructures.

RG3 still needs help. Donations needed of: deodorant, toilet paper, flour, corn, coffee, chocolate, gel and / or shaving cream, rice, cereals, salt, cream, pasta, after-shave, nappies and adult incontinence pads, colónias para bebés (?), bath gel for infants and adults, and hair conditioner.

Lions Club of Funchal opens an account. To raise funds to help resettle victims of the flood. NIB of bank account for donations, account in CGD is: 0035 0336 0011 7092 9305 0.

ECONOMY

AidaAluna brings tourists. After six cancellations of cruise ships, the Port of Funchal returns to normal today. 2,250 German tourists arrived and were greeted with a warm welcome and presented with flowers. This charm offensive was by the Port Administrators who also laid on a bus to transport tourists to downtown Funchal. A symbolic day for the region. The Costa Europa, a frequent visitor, suffered a serious accident the day before yesterday while mooring at Sharm el-Sheik in Egypt. The strong wind pushed the ship against the wall of the port, killing three crew members and two passengers were injured. The hull was damaged and the cruise had to be ended. In April, the ship will operate under charter to Thomson Cruises with the name Thomson Dream.

APAVT and TAP to see reconstruction. Tomorrow, a delegation form the Portuguese Association of Travel Agents and Tourism is expected in Madeira to see the progress of the recuperation of the regional infrastructure following the recent floods. The president and vice-president will meet the Regional Secretary of Tourism and Transport to hear an account of initiatives taken to support the resumption of tourism. Journalists from the major Portuguese tourism publications will also be flown in by TAP, accompanied by the airline’s general manager.

JORNAL DA MADEIRA

REGIONAL

All displaced to be rehoused by the end of March. The chairman of the IHM said that all housing situations caused by the storm of 20th February should be resolved by the end of March. In Funchal, Santa Cruz and Câmara de Lobos, people would either be temporarily or permanently rehoused. The same for Ribeira Brava, but the IHM has no vacant accommodation so they are looking for leasing or purchasing housing, (which is scarce), or asking emigrants with empty property to temporarily lease it. In other counties, there are fewer people to be accommodated. The various authorities will see if those temporarily rehoused can go back to their own homes or if the houses cannot be recuperated.

Bridge mounted on Tuesday. The Mayor of Ribeira Brava announced that a military bridge would allow access to Fajã da Ribeira, replacing the one that was destroyed. Another bridge allowing access to Tabua should be constructed either that day or the next day. There is still no road access to north Tabua but road access to south Tabua is now opened. Still restricted access to Serra d’Água but trucks taking donated goods to the area are allowed and 40 military personnel are offering support to the isolated population.

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

Damages in commerce hit by the floods – The loss of rent in certain establishments is on the way to hitting 20 million Euros.

Today’s main news headline : Restaurants in the marina are going to ground – The storms and their destruction oblige the Ports to prepare for works : 8 units in Funchal Marina, amongst them restaurants and shops, are going now to be demolished. The new structures will cost €5 million, and 100 workers will lose their jobs.

Anxiety surrounds the summit in Lisbon – [president] Jardim says he trusts in [prime minister] Sócrates regarding the promised support. Parties expect money for the Region and responsibility.

Sócrates says that the priority is cooperation – The prime minister says that now is not the moment for "recriminations and disputes".

"If everything were to run normally, I will get to 2011 and say ‘cheerio, until next time’". Jardim admits to reconsidering his decision to quit the Regional Government in 2011.

Cleaning operations underway in Luso-Brasileira – Public Security Police asks residents to stay at home.

Citizens with an important role in the ‘return’ of Funchal - Life goes back to normal today in the capital, but with many constraints. The council requests understanding : the ideal action is to leave the car at home. The Diário shows the closed streets and authorised parking spaces. MAP SHOWING ROADS CLOSED / RESTRICTED & CAR PARKS OPEN

Rumours continue to disrupt the reconstruction and the searches.

"This is a superior people" – Jardim says he was not surprised by the speed of the clean up.

Schools reopen on Monday – The exception is the Language Academy of Madeira that "for reasons of safety" will resume classes on Tuesday.

Traffic returns to almost all of the streets of Funchal – Six car parks are open starting Monday.

The storm in Madeira was only a "sign" of a global trend – The Director of the North American Centre for Science and Technology for Coastal Margin Observation, warns : Portugal "is going to live in the midst of climate change".

The main sport / football headline today : Alvalade returns to live a night of triumph – Gala exhibition of Sporting results in thrashing (3 – 0) of FC Porto. The ‘classic’ match raised around 30 thousand Euros for Madeira. Today Nacional v Belenenses – 8.15 pm SportTV1.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

Many thanks to Paul for sending in these two links to articles :

1. What Atlantic Holidays, part of the Pestana Group, is advising its clients who booked or are considering holidays in Madeira. “The situation in Madeira has improved immensely in the last few days and the island is gradually returning to normal.” Atlantic Holidays part of the Pestana Group informs its customers on its website that: ”None of the tourist resorts nor the hotels have been affected and, therefore, we continue to operate our holidays as planned.” Link to their site with up to date images of the island

2. BBC Interview with Joao Camacho in Gloucester who runs Atlantic Holidays. “A storm of this magnitude has never happened before in Madeira so everybody is upset”, says João Camacho in Gloucester who runs Atlantic Holidays, interviewed on BBC Radio Gloucestershire. INTERVIEW

And here’s another one just in this morning … Island Escape, but no escape this week … thanks for the photo Pete.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

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Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Dog owner needed ; Jersey & Guernsey chip in ; Road closures, & other news headlines

Der — Sun, 28 Feb 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo from Tom

"Der, please post that nice dog on your board. I have found him on Monte today. It is lost dog little bit skinny but well behaving and very nice, very small and cute. I cannot keep him longer than 3 days. I am not staying here permanently, otherwise I’ll keep him. Thanks. (Free of charge of course)". Tom. If anyone can help pleeeease … email me and I will pass it on. Der

Many thanks to Becky for these videos :

A guided walk from Monte to Terreiro da Luta – seemingly all uphill and accompanied by the strange choice of some terrifying Holst, which certainly makes you wonder what’s around each corner! If that doesn’t put you off, here’s exactly what to do, and at least it must be all downhill on the way back…

Another walk, this time into the peace and quiet of a Banana Farm in Arco da Calheta, ending with a beautiful view of the sea. No music, just footsteps… and bananas.

Samantha Cox sent me this link for her full interview on the situation on Madeira, saying that the "the show was very positive about coming to Madeira and I think will help allay any fears people may have, especially as the clincher was the chap at the beginning complaining, he came here, and ended the show with a thumbs up report!". BBC RADIO 4 You will need to have / download REALPLAYER to listen.

Many thanks to Paul for sending in this information (2 articles) :

Roads closed temporarily as at 27 February 2010 (list and pdf map)

The Regional Civil Protection Service, IP-RAM, in statement issued on February 27, 2010, reports that are temporarily closed the following regional roads:
Regional roads

E.R. 101 – Caminho dos Pretos
E.R. 101 – Ponta Delgada – Boaventura
E.R. 101-10 Madalena do Mar – Ponta do Sol
E.R. 103 – Ribeiro Frio – Poiso
E.R. 103 – Zona do Cabouco
E.R. 104 – Serra D’ Água – Meia Légua
E.R. 105 – Boca da Encumeada – Estanquinhos
E.R.107-1 – Acesso à Eira do Serrado
E.R. 213 – São Roque do Faial
E.R. 222 – Sítio da Santinha – Ponte
E.R. 223 – Jardim do Mar – Estreito da Calheta
E.R. 227 – Ribeira da Tabua
E.R. 229 – Lugar da Ribeira (Bridge) – Campanário

ViaExpresso:
Exit Ribeira Brava Motor way- Cruzamento do Rosário
Serra d’Água old road – Tunnel Sacramento
Estreito da Calheta – Jardim do Mar

ViaLitoral:
Luso-Brasileira -Pestana Júnior
Motor way acess to Encumeada
The Regional Civil Protection Service, IP-RAM, reports that the following regional roads are partially closed:
E.R. 102 – Camacha – Santo da Serra
E.R. 103 – Monte – Poiso
E.R. 107 – Romeiras-Curral das Freiras MAP OF ROAD CLOSURES INFORMATION SOURCE

Viva Madeira, Viva Jersey! One primary school in Jersey raises nearly 800 euros for Madeira!

Source of Jersey map

PUPILS at Springfield Primary School in the capital of Jersey, St.Helier, my homeland, have raised more than £700 for the Jersey ‘Side by Side’ appeal for Madeira yesterday – the most the school has ever raised at a fundraising event.

The school, which has many students of Madeiran descent, organised a ‘Madeira Day’ during which the students paid £1 to wear yellow and blue, the colours of the Madeiran flag.

There was also a cake sale, face painting and blue and yellow friendship bracelets on sale. One girl even donated £50 of her birthday money to the fundraising total. Teacher Jackie Meneses, who herself has family in Madeira, said that the day had been an emotional one.

‘It was amazing,’ she said. ‘We made the most amount of money we have ever made in fundraising and we have also been given a £100 voucher for La Capannina restaurant, the most famous Italian restaurant on the island for which we hope to organise a competition of some sort. I was quite emotional and we were just overawed by the generosity of people.’

Many people from the Madeiran community came up to us and said thank you for doing this.’ LINK

‘Viva Madeira! Viva Guernsey! An aid lorry is leaving Guernsey this weekend to help those affected by the flash flood in Madeira.

Elvio Pires, president of the Guernsey Portuguese Association, said there had been a great response to their appeal.

He said the lorry had been packed with clothing, hygienic products and other items to help those who lost everything in the flood earlier this week.

Mr Pires paid tribute to those from the island who helped to fill the lorry "in just two days".

He said: "Thank you to everyone who brought stuff to send over, locals, people from the Latvian community, from the Polish community and of course from the Madeiran community."

Mr Pires, along with a majority of the island’s Portuguese community, has family in Madeira. Map of Bailiwick of Guernsey labelled in the Guernsey language SOURCE BBC

It’s great what is going on to try and help, and these are just two more cases, and the East Timor story of Friday, and I heard on the radio that Naval Football Club were donating their match receipts to help Madeira, from their game yesterday (Naval won 2 – 1). But only one person (thank you) has answered the question yesterday from Roslyn. Does that mean that no blog reader has donated anything yet … can’t be? Can it? I can admit that I haven’t as yet, but I want to, and I need to know as much as Roslyn, and sooner rather than later.

Tom put a comment on yesterday’s blog comments: "Just returned from Monte. Babosas is destroyed totally. Church standing there Friday a week ago is a pile of rumble. Two huge rocks like 2m high rolled over the church like a bomb. Only the steps of the church and back washrooms survived. Clean up in progress".

Click either photo to view full size

He then sent me in these photos, adding "Here you have Monte / Babosas? and the gone small antic church. You can see two bombs — huge rocks. They went from the hill behind the church and destroyed it totally and completely. This is unbelievable. Today I went to the heart / mouth of the beginning of the flash flood high above Monte inside eucalyptus forest (I do not advice going there). Two streams (one is already gone today, the second is miniscule today). They join together at the end of the forest and run down with tremendous force carving a huge valley on its way. Just 300-400 meters below, the first obstacle was the small church. As you see there is not much left. Only the church washrooms survive just because they were hidden aside. Moonlike picture".

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It was a very short press conference yesterday evening, as the government spokesperson briefed those interested on what has happened since the last one. The main point was that ALL schools will be open as usual tomorrow. Conceição Estudante added that the roads that serve the schools may still have restrictions, and the parking, and of course public transport will not be fully back to normal, but a little extra effort if needed wouldn’t do any harm. She spoke briefly about a couple of works that were now underway, including the access problem at Paul do Mar.

Conceição Estudante, as many will know, is the Regional Secretary for Transport and Tourism. So why has she been the spokeswoman for the Madeira Government over the last week, and throughout this catastrophe? Not the ideal person as far as jobs go. Maybe because the most important aspect of all this is minimising the impact on present and future tourism? Definitely not! Conceição Estudante is a brilliant performer in public relations, and not that she needed to prove the point, but she has done a tremendous job in presenting the bad news, and some good recovery news as well, and also in representing her somewhat less credible lords and masters.

She came a bit unstuck on the controversy of ‘counting the dead’, but I would guess that she was doing exactly what she was asked to do, and when the ‘game was up’, she came back with a response that almost seemed to satisfy the journalists. That’s not to say that the talk of the island is no longer about how the numbers of deceased are still being suppressed, although personally I am one of the few that don’t believe that.

Can you imagine Uncle Bertie or one of his political cronies trying to front that responsibility? I tried, and chortled a little. A return visit to Tabua perhaps (remember Summer 2009) and UB telling the journalists to F*** O** because one asked a difficult question. Or perhaps one of the more senior PSD-M politicians, perhaps the one with a rather large share in the Madeira cement industry here, telling journalists that Serra d’Água would be rebuilt in concrete, without the € signs showing in the rapidly rotating eyeballs in front of an audience that knows the history of the greedy git. And I don’t mean to be disrespectful in this ‘imaginary scenario’, as I should have no doubt that all these fine men would be looking after Madeira and Madeirans, first and foremost. Although the news this week, about turning down the services of a specialised search and rescue team from the Azores, does cast a little shadow over my perception of what might be the true priorities.

The appointment of Conceição Estudante, as the interface between the regional government and the media in these troubled times, was an absolute masterstroke. I take my hat off to the top men that thought that one up, and to the lady herself. Conceição Estudante is not an elected politician, she is appointed to her post by the Regional Government (as far as I have been able to work out so far), and so although obviously she has to tow the party political line of Uncle Bertie, she can actually demonstrate some degree of impartiality and separate herself from some of the nonsense of the politicians that surround her. She does so more often than not, but not always, so outside of this week’s performance she doesn’t quite score full marks on my blackboard.

So what she has done is managed communications about a natural disaster and its consequences, and as a result (I really so hope at least) and is averting a potentially really deep economic crisis, through her credibility, dominating personality, and natural abilities in the complex matters of PR. I am referring of course to Madeira through the eyes of the rest of the world … firstly how we can attract help and financial aid, and secondly without making Madeira look like a crumbling wreck and therefore unattractive to tourism.

I should finish up by saying that only an idiot could actually make Madeira sound like a crumbling wreck, but Madeira is of course the home to the king of that genre. Madeira is of course as beautiful as ever, and following the advice issued by the authorities one will ensure that a holiday or even a lifetime here is as safe as it has ever been.

There is a part two to this ramble which I may publish tomorrow, but I am not sure if publishing it now would be insensitive in the circumstances … logo se vê.

Many thanks to Elaine for yesterday’s top news stories :

DIÁRIO 27/02/2010

MADEIRA

Storm devastates Aviceiros. Montado dos Aviceiros is a property located at 1,200 metres above sea level in the zone of Campanário in Ribeira Brava. It was destroyed last Saturday during the storm. Access is only through the Boca da Corrida in Jardim da Serra and it is situated two kilometres from the Forest Rangers post. The aim of the Montado dos Aviceiros project is to restore the original vegetation of the valleys and the construction of a self-sufficient ecovillage to enable a healthy lifestyle. Over several years, the flora found at this altitude has been restored with the infrastructure to support mountain tourism, agriculture and livestock farming. There have been training courses organized on various topics and group workshops. At the site, two houses have been used by nature lovers, up to 15 at a time, who have enjoyed the various footpaths. The excessive rain during 2009 / 2010 destroyed the natural cohesion of the shallow soils of these slopes, so the soil could not support the heavy rainfall on February 20th. The slopes gave way, carrying earth and stones to the lower area which serves as a flat surface for houses, agricultural store rooms and car parks. There were no casualties, only material damage and all planned activities have been cancelled. As well as flora found at this altitude, there are chestnut and walnut trees and the area is ideal for both nesting and visiting birds, the most evident is the ever present Manta.

Caritas is now asking for donations of furniture and household equipment. Caritas is working in conjunction with the Army and Social Security and people are beginning to be rehoused. They are distributing donated food and hygiene products throughout the counties and now also need furniture, electrical domestic appliances, equipment and utensils for those rehoused. The priority is to distribute goods to people who have lost everything, but they do not need any more clothing at present. Goods can be delivered to RG3 and the two community centres of the Associação de Desenvolvimento Comunitário do Funchal, in Vargem (Nazaré) and Murteiras. Large items are being collected at a warehouse in Ribeira João Gomes.

Câmara de Lobos has a loss of 35 million euros. This is a conservative estimate and will increase. Curral das Freiras and Jardim da Serra were the parishes most affected by landslides. The storm caused one death, one person missing and 50 – 60 homeless families, 15 still housed in community centres. Debris has been removed form the mouth of the ribeira da Alforra and up to yesterday, 7,500 cubic metres of debris have been removed and dumped. The council had wanted a new road access to Curral das Freiras but this decision was overturned by the PSD in the last Municipal Assembly, and President Jardim said it was absurd to speak of a new access. The mayor has always expressed his concern that the parish should always be safely accessible and the problems of isolation of this area need to be solved.

Hundreds of people are helping in the collection and separation of food. At the Mercado Abastecedor de São Martinho, over 200 volunteers have been separating food and other usable items donated by Jerónimo Martins. These have been rescued from the group’s flooded Pingo Doce shops in Anadia and Doce Vita. The products will be delivered to families affected by the storm. The estimate is that 30% of the stock at the supermarket in Anadia and 80% of the stock in Dolce Vita have arrived and would be worth about one million euros in the food market. Everything that was salvageable from the mud has been delivered to this centre and the rice that had become moist went to SPAD for animal feed. The more perishable products like fruit and vegetables have been delivered to support centres in the most affected parishes and to charities. The cleaned and separated products are now being packaged for delivery to relocated families. Even children have helped, especially as there has been no school and they have nothing to do, alongside students and teachers.

Youngsters apprehended robbing a devastated house. Two people were arrested early on Tuesday at Seara Velha in Curral das Freiras after attempting to steal from a house that had collapsed during last Saturday’s storm. The two, aged 17 and 21, live in Curral das Freiras, were armed with a shotgun and fired at arriving police. They eventually surrendered without the police having to shoot back. There have been other attempts in Funchal, including an assault on a bank and a shop during the chaotic first hours of the flood. Both of these individuals were arrested.

ECONOMY

Mundovip launches campaign ‘Celebrate Recovery’. A promotional package for the domestic market, ‘Come to the Flower Festival to celebrate the recovery of Madeira’. Mundovip is the largest tourism operator in Portugal and is offering from 15 – 17 April, flights on TAP and SATA from Lisbon and bed and breakfast accommodation at the five star CS Madeira Hotel. Rates are between 209 and 462 euros, and 133 euros for children. They also have a promotion with accommodation at the Quinta da Bela Vista. However, the Spanish tour operator ‘Portugal Tour’ has had cancellations for Easter. They consider this to be normal considering that Spanish television has focused every day on the disaster. The tour operators might find more tourists prefer the island of Porto Santo.

CULTURE

‘Hope for Madeira’ is tomorrow (Sunday). The solidarity gala at the Coliseu dos Recreios in Lisbon starts at 21.45 tomorrow (Sunday). It hosts several top Portuguese musicians and will be broadcasted live on SIC television.

‘Voices of the Songs of Fado’ unite for Madeira. This show will be held on Saturday March 6 at 21.00 at the Centro de Congressos da Madeira. Tickets on sale at the Congress Centre (and possibly FNAC) cost 15 euros.

Mural de Berardo destroyed at Monte. A mural dating from 1991, by the Argentinian artist Alberto Cedrón, was destroyed at the Quinta do Monte. A landslide fell onto the wall comprising of multiple panels in ceramics. This mural was titled, Adventure of the Portuguese in Japan, and measured 20 x 2 metres. Only one third of the panel is in a good condition and the rest has been partially or totally destroyed. It is not known what can be restored.

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

Today’s main news headline : Excavators head for Serra de Água – Completed the clearances of the river beds in Funchal, the constructors now have a new large scale objective.

Tempest leaves €500 thousand [worth] of inert materials piled up.

Navy continues searches in Santo António.

The large photo, bottom right, shows a devastating scene on a major road : Earthquake in Chile causes 214 deaths.

Diário to pay tribute to the victims and heroes of the catastrophe.

Government prepares restart of lessons on Monday. The Regional Secretary for Education calls for "common sense in analysing" the issues of lateness and absences.

Waves lash the pool at the Lido [Funchal] – Part of the edge is destroyed.

The night was calm, despite the Weather Office warnings.

The main sport / football headline today : They got away with 35 thousand Euros for Madeira – Marítimo lost the game of solidarity.

Madaíl asks for support from UEFA to restore the Madeiran sports park.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

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Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Funchal flooding by night ; Road closures around Madeira ; Best way to make donations?

Der — Sat, 27 Feb 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to … Bird : "I guess each of these has its point. My own preference is for no. 3, which has some drama but is technically imperfect (one does not run around with a tripod in disaster areas). For those that prefer poetry, there is no. 4 ("The Avenida do Mar, well named"). But it’s all up to you" … Bird. Many thanks Bird, I think they are all shocking but impressive, and I presume were taken last weekend before dawn … your first name isn’t ‘Early’ by any chance?

I hope we can all wake up this morning and find that all the worry of yesterday has passed, or is passing at least. People were really concerned about the forecast for heavy rain last night, I even saw shops closing early and using primitive means to protect their premises from further flooding. Der.

Many thanks to Becky for these two cheerier videos :

Bailhinho da Madeira.

Impressions of Madeira. Footage taken in February 2010, which I expected to be completely rain-soaked, but it finally ends in sunshine looking down on Curral das Freiras from Eira do Serrado.

Tobi kindly sent this in : "I have recorded the BBC Radio 4 interview" HERE Brave man Tobi, I just hope that Sam doesn’t mind, and no one else ends up in the water.

I was sent this by email : "My husband and I have been visiting Madeira two or three times each year since 1990. We have Madeiran Godchildren and a Madeiran family. This beautiful island is our second home. We are devastated by this tragedy but know Madeira will rebuild and survive and become beautiful again.

Our first visit to Madeira in August 1990 was because I had undergone emergency eye surgery in May of that year and, once recovered, I made the decision to only look at beautiful things because I had almost lost my sight. Madeira was my choice of "viewing" and it has never, ever, disappointed me. We had our silver wedding anniversary celebration in the English Church in 1998 and have attended the baptism and confirmation of our Godchildren in Câmara de Lobos.

I only wish I knew how to help the Madeiran people who have lost their homes and livelihoods and relatives. I shall ask the Side-by-Side people in Jersey if I can help through them". Roslyn (full name supplied) England.

Thank you Roslyn … if you want to make a financial donation, there are several routes, covered on this blog during this week, and more. I cannot tell you which is the best route, but maybe some people who have already given could post comments today on their opinions, particularly regarding currency, ease of use, and what are the more official, fast, and direct channels of giving.

This weekends football : Somehow it doesn’t seem right to be talking about football, but life must go on, and maybe a little distraction will do some good in such a distressing week. Anyway, as I have no news to the contrary, I assume that the planned fixtures are being played. First up are Marítimo at 4 pm this afternoon, with an away game at Naval, just 4 points behind our lads. Nacional host bottom club Belenenses on Monday night. 8.15 pm on SportTV1. Belenenses have won just one game in the 20 played so far this season. Top game this weekend is tomorrow night, when Sporting, buoyant after giving Everton a bit of a whipping in the Europa League this week, host Porto. It’s on SportTV1 at 8.15 pm.

Many thanks to Elaine (out West) for this piece from the Diário :

Roads closed around the island. The most complicated situations are those in Meia Légua, Serra da Agua and also Tabua. Several roads remain closed after the storm last Saturday. The west is the most affected, but there is also prohibited or conditional access elsewhere in the region. According to information provided by the Regional Secretariat for Social Affairs Bureau, the following roads in the west are closed: ER 101 (10), between Madalena do Mar and Ponta do Sol, ER 104 between Serra d’Agua and Meia Légua, ER 105 from Boca da Encumeada to Estanquinhos, ER 222, which connects Sítio da Santinha to Ponte, ER 223 at the descent from Jardim do Mar to Estreito da Calheta, ER 227 in Ribeira da Tabua, and ER 229 which connects Lugar da Ribeira (Ponte) to Campanário.

Also still closed are the ER 101 at Caminho dos Pretos (Funchal) and between Ponta Delgada and Boaventura. In addition there are some roads where traffic is restricted. These are the ER 102 between Camacha and Santo da Serra, the RE 103 from Monte to Poiso, and the ER 107, which connects Romeiras to the Nuns’ Valley. The Bureau also draws the attention of motorists to the fact that, while open, the roads should be used with great caution because some have not yet been thoroughly cleaned.

Elaine (out East) is back after a long loss of internet … hurrah … many thanks for these news stories.

DIÁRIO 26/02/2010

FRONT PAGE NEWS

Jardim spoke with Barroso – 1.3 billion Euros in damages. Funding will be made at three levels: Europe, State and the Region. The balance is not finalised and losses are guaranteed to be more than 1.3 billion Euros. This figure will be explained to the European Commission at two different levels. First, the banks and the mouths of the most dangerous streams have been destroyed, and the added water transported thousands of cubic metres of gravel and mud, weakened the beds and leaves a threat in the air in case of new rainfall. With more than 100 km of regional roads, which join all of the municipal roads, partially or totally damaged, reconstruction also involves the consolidation of slopes to prevent new landslides. At least three bridges have fallen, their reconstruction involves a large investment or alternative newer safer trajectories constructed. The inventory of damage is still being produced, involving the municipal councils, the Estradas da Madeira and departments of the Regional Government. Jardim will then send this to Brussels along with two Regional ministers. The Council of Funchal has advanced a loss of 140 million Euros for trade and more than 100 million Euros for municipal roads and other structures. This does not include money for intervention in the streams and help required for reconstruction of habitation for those who have lost their houses. Some areas need to construct new infrastructures, for example a new tunnel at Santa de Água will cost 60 million Euros. At the second level, Madeira will have to rebuild newer and safer accessibility and residential areas. There has been major destruction in Serra de Água, Tabua, Funchal, Santa Cruz as well as other counties. The funding will come through grants and lines of credit. The decisive factor may be changing the rules applied by the European Parliament by Portuguese deputies, suggesting a reprogramming of funds from the European Cohesion Fund, European Regional Development Fund and European Social Fund on a basis of rapid and simplified procedures making advance payments wherever possible.

MADEIRA

Quercus challenge people to speak. The environmental association Quercus published today on the Internet portal a document listing 22 failures in the organization and planning of the territory, ‘Aluvião no Funchal, 20 de Fevereiro de 2010, o que ajudou que tudo corresse mal?’ Over the past 14 years, the association has pointed out errors and recommendations for risk prevention. In 2003, their Study on the Streams traced the history of landslides and mudslides and recommended measures to prevent them. It is now time for the community to speak about what they saw, whether this is down to extreme nature, climate change or other factors. Using a map of Funchal, they have outlined the three clogged and flooded watercourses and want this to be a starting point of a document for the Public Ministry.

Two more dead in the rubble at Ribeira Brava. Five dead, two missing and 102 homeless in this county. The two missing bodies that were found yesterday are thought to belong to a family of seven from Pomar de Rocha and the only survivor has had at least one limb amputated. The elderly woman was found in the interior of the residence and the child lying in the bottom of the valley, near the Meia Légua tunnel, just inside the perimeter of the Centro Desportivo da Madeira. The mayor admits there may be more victims in the county, especially along the expressway of Serra de Água which was engulfed by flood waters. The quality of the water supply is poor in the West of Ribeira Brava, especially in Tabua and Banda d`Além. The most troublesome area for the water supply is Serra de Água and Ribeira da Tabua as the only supply to this isolated area has been broken. There are noticeable differences day to day in the county despite setbacks like craters appearing in roads. About 100 homes were inundated, 30 badly damaged and eight levadas flooded in Serra D´Água last Saturday. The population in the areas most affected, Travessa, Quebrada, Romeira and other areas, are returning to normal life but still express fears.

57 landslides in one day. On Saturday, in the peak of the rainfall, between nine and eleven o’clock in the morning, there were 57 landslides in the county of Funchal. São Martinho was the parish least affected whereas Santo António, a highly populated area, was one of the parishes with the most number of victims. The map also shows the number of trees that have been planted in an attempt to prevent flooding. But the process of reforestation was severely affected by years of drought between 2002 and 2005. There is no deadline for completion of the clean up work in Funchal, the machines still clearing the three streams. From Ribeira de São João, three to four tons of stones have been removed, The clearance work is difficult by Marina Shopping and Minas Gerais. It would have been easier to demolish the roundabout – Rotunda do Infante – but the council decided to make a hole in the concrete in this area and this has delayed the work by a day. In the area of Ribeira de João Gomes, the critical points are the Campo da Barca and the Oudinet building. The petrol station has been demolished and will not be rebuilt. At Praia Formosa, there have been 2,250 truck loads dumped, retrieved from the streams and lower Funchal. Link to the map.

Carreiros resume activity in Monte. The wicker basket rides down from Monte to Funchal will resume today. The problems in the final area of Livramento should be resolved today. There are 130 men involved in this type of work and they are wanting to resume as it is their life. Confident of help from Nossa Senhora do Monte because this could have been worse. One of the men, a 39 year old, has lost his house and is residing with his unemployed wife and two children at accommodation of the Scouts in Monte. One of the things he saved from the house was his costume for the work – white dress and straw hat – a tourist symbol for more than 200 years.

ECONOMY

Supermarkets keeping prices the same. Food prices will not increase following the disaster. Prices are the same throughout the country at Pingo Doce. The company, Grupo Jerónimo Martins, has contracts that ensure fixed prices throughout the year. Modelo will keep the prices the same to help Madeirans in their hour of greatest difficulty. Grupo Sá will not alter prices to ensure the security and peace of Madeirans. Only 15% of their products are local so they will not have to increase prices with agricultural produce affected by the rain.

JORNAL DA MADEIRA

REGION

Santa Cruz notes extensive damage. Contrary to what may seem by the near silence of the media, the county of Santa Cruz has been hit hard by the storm. 19 houses need total reconstruction, 33 are in need of work and 12 need stabilization work. Some households had to be evacuated as the area was dangerous and there are 184 homeless people (67 households). The mayor asks the population in Gaula and Camacha not to over consume water now the supply has been re-established after a break in the tunnel at Porto Novo. Camacha was the area most damaged by the storm as there has been a high level of rainfall since the beginning of the year, resulting in landslides.

Machico estimate three million Euros loss. Several shops and houses were flooded with water and mud. In the zone of Caramanchão, a dozen hoses were affected by flooding. Many walls and public areas have to be replaced and traffic routes cleaned.

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

Solidarity with artists and sportsmen – After the support announced by Benfica and Porto, Sporting keeps it [gate?] receipts for Madeira. Marco Polo and Maria da Fé on the list for a concert / show in Funchal on 6th March.

Survivor from Pomar [da Rocha] doesn’t want to return home – The two sisters succumb to the storm, in Arco da Calheta, and José Guarnel is traumatised. Dramas throughout the island.

Today’s main news headline : State and European Union guarantee €500 million. The EU guarantees just €44 million from the ‘lost fund’. Well short of the €1.4 billion needed to rebuild Madeira according to yesterdays news, and that figure is creeping up by the day.

Barroso visits Madeira on the 12th of March. The (Portuguese) European Commissioner is going to pay us a visit. An interesting question as to whether his roots will ensure he cuts Madeira the best possible aid deal, or will he aim to be seen as impartial and hence rather cold to a tragedy at home.

Lisbon will take on a loan of €240 million and the transfer of another €200 million.

The Madeira Government announced €20 million grant for affected traders.

Councils exempt citizens and businesses from IMI.

The main photo today is accompanied by the headline : Rumours make nervous and empty Funchal. The rumours were back on the attack during the day yesterday, consisting of false orders for the evacuation of the capital up until 18.00 hours. Later, the Civil Protection came forward to correct the ‘alarm’ situation, such as Meteorology did with a ‘hurricane’ [rumour ?]. But in the meantime there were citizens fleeing, and shops and services rushing to close early. Much the same over my way in Ribeira Brava, with shops and businesses closing early, and hasty attempts at waterproofing premises against further water damage. By 9.30 pm last night, before even a gust of wind or a droplet of precipitation, the place was a ghost town. All (so far) unwarranted, as after a night of on and off winds and rain, a nice sunny day has appeared. River levels are low, although there was a very small flash flood not long before midnight. There are reports on the radio this morning about damage caused by the very strong winds.

The latest information given yesterday was that the depression did not put the island at risk, however calling for caution in the early morning.

20 families evacuated as a precaution.

Meeting between Sócrates and Jardim is already scheduled for Monday – There will be a summit between central and regional government in order to work out the support from the state for Madeira, in the succession of the storms. [Prime Minister] Sócrates and [Finance Minister] Teixeira dos Santos are available. Jardim (who yesterday was checked out in hospital following an ailment) says he is confident.

In Funchal, [Miguel] Alburquerque continues summarising the effects of the storm, despite of the ‘insinuations’.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

BY EMAIL : News from Prazeres to Riviera Brava : Update on conditions from Prazeres to Ribeira Brava this morning (Saturday). The roads are OK but care is needed as there are large rocks at the side of the roads. Madalena do Mar has appeared to have lost the bridge at the end of the river, so the walk way down the front has collapsed. Diggers are at present removing a large amount of debris from this area.

At the roundabout at Tabua there are diggers removing very large boulders that cover the road up to Tabua, some as large as 5ft in diameter.

Some more of the wall at Lugar de Baixo has given way with huge waves crashing over the other parts, the area around the pool is unrecognisable, it is littered with debris. The road down has had another rock fall.

The roads from Paul da Serra to Canhas, Prazeres and Arco da Calheta are passable with care, as the rock falls and trees have yet to be cleared from the side of the roads.

Regards. Selina. Many thanks Selina, lots more news on damage overnight coming through on the news.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

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Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Madeira flood – photo special – February 2010

Der — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 03:05:00 +0000

With more photos than I can ever use, this was the best way to use some up. Many thanks to Tom, Pete, Sue, and another for sending them in.

Click on any photo for a full size view.

From Tom : "Funchal downtown is going full swing today. Many tourists and locals are basking in the sunshine and enjoying fresh coffee. The only black spot on west side is lower part of Dolce Vita (Dolce Vita garage is still under water) the river there still flows on the pavement and through the tunnel to the sea, as per my picture".

From Tom : "Here you have police searching for bodies of the driver and passenger, also under the mud deep below are at least 2-3 cars. They have a special instrument / device to see through the mud or measure the magnetic field. They have found cars and pointed to diggers were to look for them. It happened in Levada da Corujeira stream".

From Pete : "The location is Ribeira de São João at Avenida Calouste Gulbenkian [Funchal], 11.15 on Saturday morning. The drains over flowing. Cars stopped, one car in photo was white. The sound was like roaring aircraft, also you can taste soil in the air. Police and fire crew tuned cars round up the street with hills to avoid water".

These were taken by Elize :

And finally, for now, these were sent in by Sue (West) :

I have loads of photos from Funchal (and Ribeira Brava of course) of the flood and the resulting damage, more than I can possibly show on the blog, so please don’t send any more in from those locations unless they are exceptional, or quite different (a rescue attempt, act of heroism, perhaps). Outside of these locations hardly anything has been sent in ??? What’s going on out West? Der.

Tourism worries ; Ronaldo to play in fund raiser ; Euro support fund ; More weather concerns

Der — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Dramatic photo from Tom … well you know what I mean : "East river going to mercados … all from that photo point has been destroyed".

Many thanks to Paul for sending these in :

Viva Madeira 2! – Tourists urged not to cancel holidays.

The impact will be quick to pass and Madeira will soon recover and return to normal hopefully within days.

Source of photograph

…says Michael Blandy, chairman of the Blandy group, which has five hotels on the island and caters for the majority of British visitors to Madeira.

The Daily Telegraph article continues:

Michael Blandy said many people had been put off coming to Madeira but predicted that the impact would be quick to pass and that Madeira would soon recover and return to normal "hopefully within days.

"In reality it is a very small area that has been affected and the authorities are working incredibly hard to restore the infrastructure and ensure a return to normality."

"Tourism chiefs have urged holidaymakers not to abandon Madeira as a tourist destination following flash floods and mudslides at the weekend that left at 42 dead and hundreds homeless" Link to The Daily Telegraph article

(CNN) – Cristiano Ronaldo is to play in a special benefit match for the victims of the Madeira floods and mudslides which have claimed the lives of at least 42 people. The world’s most expensive player has made himself available for a game between Portuguese champions Porto and a joint team from Madeira-based clubs Nacional and Marítimo.

No date has yet been set for the match, but Ronaldo has said he will help in "whatever possible way" after the tragic events of the weekend. Porto coach Jesualdo Ferreira added: "Porto want to express their condolences for all that has happened and, as a club, do everything necessary to help Madeira."

Real Madrid forward Ronaldo was born and grew up in Madeira and has a special football center named after him, which is next to the Nacional stadium. The 24-year-old paid his own tribute after scoring the first goal in Real’s 6-2 rout of Villarreal on Sunday, lifting his shirt to reveal a t-shirt bearing the name "Madeira" on the chest

"Nobody can be indifferent to such a tragedy, especially me," Ronaldo told the official Real Madrid Web site, www.realmadrid.com. "I was born and raised on the island. It’s given me so much. This is why I want to make myself available to help in whatever possible way.

"I would like to help official bodies and organizations to minimize the effects of this great tragedy and to get over them as soon as possible." Former World Player of the Year Ronaldo moved to Real Madrid from Manchester United in the summer for a record $120 million fee. CNN LINK

Don’t forget that there are heavy rains forecasted for today. The intensity is not comparable to that of Saturday, but with just 6 days between the two precipitations, there could be effects beyond the normal because everything is still so wet. There is also a separate warning for strong winds in Funchal and the high zones. This is from the BBC … many thanks to Pete for the link.

More heavy rain is forecast for Madeira later in the week, following the devastating floods on Saturday.

The island lies directly in the path of more storms developing in the topical Atlantic. The first of the storms is forecast to hit on Wednesday with a further more intense storm on Friday. With the clean up operation underway, the new storms are unwelcome news, raising the possibility of further destruction. As the funerals are held for the victims of the floods it is feared the death toll could reach 70. The winter months are normally the wettest part of the year in Madeira, but this winter has seen a succession of low pressures pass over the island. After hitting Madeira, the storms will then head northeast bringing disruptive weather to the Portuguese mainland and Spain. Nina Ridge explains why Madeira is seeing a series of storms.

And finally, another link from Paul …

European Parliament emergency debate on Madeira’s floods: 24 February 2010

European Commissioner Günther Oettinger confirmed that money from the EU’s solidarity fund was already being directed to the Portuguese island. Link to video of the whole or most of the debate:

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

Today’s main news headline : Total damage amounting to €1.3 billion – Early calculations show astronomical budgetary needs that the Regional Government takes to Brussels today.

Insurers already paid the downtown traders.

Via rápidas and expressos are safe.

Some accesses reopen today – the road network of Funchal, weakened, recovers a little. See everything on the map. Traffic returns to within a few blocks from the centre of Funchal on Friday. Funchal Council president Miguel Albuquerque urges caution in relation to the weather. Movement is restored Friday in five streets around the city centre. In the daily update issued by Funchal Council on Thursday, Miguel Alburquerque announced that the traffic is returning this afternoon to various parts of the city. Parque do Campo da Barca also reopens Friday. With the forecasts of wind and rain for Friday and Saturday, Alburquerque once again reaffirmed that the authorities are prepared for any event, and stressed that there is no reason for panic or fear, but caution is necessary. The president warned people to be careful with their cars alongside water courses, in areas where there are land slides, and areas where there are trees at risk of falling. SEE MAP

Timor gives thousands to Madeira – Díli ignores the discourtesy and repays the friendship shown by the Madeiran people to the East Timorese cause in 1999. When East Timor was the stage of destruction and desperate for help, Madeira didn’t send a single cêntimo. The response has come regardless, with a donation of $750,000 (€556,000), from the government of the country, to help the victims of the catastrophe. The donation has been made as an act of ’solidarity and support towards the people and authorities’ of Madeira, after the president of East Timor had sent a message of condolences to his Portuguese counterpart. In 1999, whilst on holiday in Porto Santo, Madeira’s President Alberto João Jardim guaranteed that he would not give "a cêntimo" for East Timor, causing harsh reactions throughout the country. "The popular philosophy taught me that each one should govern itself", said the president of the Regional Government on 29 August 1999. Later, after much controversy, in the Region and on the Continent, the statement was softened, albeit symbolically. Jardim then said he was never against helping the Timorese people, but only that Madeira could not spare the money to give any support. So Uncle Bertie’s blunders go back many years, crossing international boundaries, and upsetting innocent people in very difficult positions through no fault of their own. At least East Timor had the common sense to recognise that the words of one absolute idiot were not the words of a decent and generous people, and thank goodness for that, as that is a sizable and much needed donation to help the recovery of our island … and it comes from one of the poorest countries in the world.

List of the 18 missing people – The number of people going missing in the storm reduced. The number of dead remains at 42.

Government rejects assistance offered by the Azores – They had 9 firemen and equipment ready to load on board to send over here. Santo Costa dismissed the offer, despite of having zones in need of help. The article itself then refers to 12 firemen and a coordinator-inspector, coming from the brigades in Ponta Delgada, Ribeira Grande, and São Miguel, of rescue specialists in areas of difficult access. There is an agreement between the two archipelagos and the Canary Islands to send mutual support in the event of catastrophes. The Azores team was assembled, equipped, and ready to go last Saturday, but on Sunday it was disbanded after those responsible for civil protection on Madeira (Santos Costa and Francisco Ramos Jardim) did not consider the help necessary. Politics over people is seems. Recent friction over the Regional Finance Law, and political differences in government colours are no doubt the underlying factors in my opinion. It is absolutely incredible that when some outlying areas have still not received much needed help, that a couple of idiot politicians could turn their backs on such an offer that had been prepared especially for this purpose, and set up through funding by the European Union.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

‘Positive news’ after the flood from Paul, including statistics from The Regional Government of Madeira. Many thanks Paul. Der

Visit of European Commissioner Mr. Johannes Hahn

The European Commissioner Mr. Johannes Hahn will visit the Autonomous Region of Madeira on the 6th and 7th of March to get acquainted with the finance needs to restore Madeira Island.

Show called “A flower to Madeira”

On the 28th of February a show will be organised called “A flower for Madeira”, organized by SIC (private Portuguese television channel) and “Coliseu dos Recreios”, with the patronage of His Excellency the President of Portuguese Republic and the participation of various Portuguese artists, in order to raise funds for Madeira victims.

Museums are reopened.

Next Sunday. Madeira will have the 1st Cruise Ship calling at the harbour of Funchal with 4.500 tourists.

Alternative excursions for tourists: local tourists operators are launching alternative excursions in Madeira Island.

Schools will be reopened Saturday ? and next Monday.

Public services are operating with reduced services and will be normalized soon.

Public transportation, in Funchal, is available with 32 routes.

Statistics:

Deaths estimated: 40

Wounded: 18 people are still in the Hospital.

Missing People: 18

Dislodgments: 563 people, 170 families are reallocated in temporary shelters.

Water Supply : In Ponta do Sol and Ribeira Brava, especially in Serra D’Água and Meia Légua the situation will be restored as soon as possible.

Electricity : Electricity is being established all over the Island, with the exception in small areas.

Communications : Mobile phone connections and fixed communications network are operating in the entire Island.

Solidarity : We inform that there is an official fund which is BANIF – International Bank of Funchal with the IBAN PT 50003800011986711677151 and SWIFT CODE BNLFPTPL.

OTHER IMPORTANT INFORMATION:

Do consider only the information given by the Regional Government.

Official information can be followed on : TWITTER MADEIRA ISLANDS TRAVEL

New updates are available on the Government’s official tourism website HERE

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

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Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Funchal after the floods ; Charity appeal ; and other news headlines from Madeira

Der — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Elize … Funchal, after the flood had gone. I have received loads of photos, many thanks.

Please bear in mind that I am on ‘catch up’ at the moment, 4 days behind, so if anything is posted that no longer seems so relevant, I probably didn’t know … I apologise.

Tess did a piece on her blog about Funchal – ‘An Island in Shock’. "I’m sure you’ll be inundated with pictures – but this is just a written piece". And another : ‘Indomitable spirit’

Paul asked me to post this :

MADEIRA DISASTER COLLECTION : Dioceses Cáritas of Funchal is collecting clothing and other goods to help those most affected by floods in Madeira. They will also inform the local population where the donations can be delivered. However, monetary donations can now be made.

Cáritas Funchal : Address: Calçada do Pico,59 9000-206 – Funchal
Phone:(+351) 291743331
Fax: (+351) 291745714 By sending a fax to this number a receipt will be sent out to you
E-mail: caritasfunchal@netmadeira.com WEBSITE

Needs: Clothes, Diapers and baby food needed, Appliances, School Material, Furniture

Donations: Financial Institution: Banif A/c no 1626371377 or NIB no. 003800011626371377113

This from Don re Madeira disaster donations : Attention here is some extra information that is important :
- (BANIF) IBAN PT 50003800011986711677151 and SWIFT CODE (BIC) BNLFPTPL
- If you use this BANIF bank account, then it gives tax benefits to taxpayers, in accordance with Articles 61 and 62 of the Statute of Tax Benefits.
- There are NO officials of the Regional Administration or City Council that are collecting funds for solidarity among the population. Official source SRTT. Thanks a lot Don

This contribution also from Paul :

VIVA MADEIRA! Coverage of Madeira’s unceasing clean-up

The clean-up operation is being documented & filmed by a BBC team led by the reporter Robert Hall on the BBC news website: HERE

Photos of key Funchal city streets that have already been cleaned in 72 hours! HERE

Videos of key Funchal city streets that have already been cleaned in 72 hours! HERE

Outside the famous ‘Apolo Restaurant’ 72 hours after the flooding: Source: FLICKR

As a benchmark for all visitor accommodation in Madeira: “the hotel industry of Madeira was not affected and maintains all operating conditions safely.”

Statement on the floods from the United Nations World Tourism Organisation: HERE

As for the tourism sector, according to the information provided by the regional government, the hotel industry of Madeira was not affected and maintains all operating conditions safely. Hotel establishments, in general, are operational and there were not reported any difficulties or problems. The Madeira International Airport is also operational. "I am confident that Madeira will continue to count on its solid tourism infrastructure and services, which have made it the destination of excellence it is today." Taleb Rifai, secretary-general of the United Nations World Tourism Organization

Viva Madeira! (long live Madeira)

[Just to change the mood a little] Pete though these links might be of interest :
DINAS DESERTS AZORES FOOD "I have been there a few times. I think they make the best food I have come across, if I was a condemned man my final wish would be one last meal there then you can do what you like ha ha". Thanks Pete.

Tom emailed and said : "Today [last Friday], the brand new dealership of Toyota was officially open in Funchal. I’ve been there. So was Mr. President uncle Bertie. He is a very good talker. His Speech was good and lasted around 15 min. without any prompter or note. During Toyota President speech the lights went off. all was kaput and dark. Fuses could not keep so much power taken from the electrical system. There were two TV stations and maybe four Radios. After we have a very nice reception, including lots of booze and finger food. During radio interview the President was visibly upset about the lack of funds from Lisbon and City staying behind with payments to subcontractors".

Today’s news headlines from the front page of the Diário de Notícias :

Difficult situations in the high zones of Funchal. There are suspicions of people buried in the Luso-Brasileira, as a consequence of a movement of an illegal dump in Babosas.

In the road Travessa dos Poços (Monte) residents are evacuated. Many thanks to Ellen for this : Wall at risk of collapse forces evacuation at Monte – Residents of the Travessa dos Poços relocated to homes of relatives. About two dozen people had to leave their homes, on Wednesday, in Travessa dos Poços, parish of Monte. Due to the forecast of rain and a wall at risk of collapse the area was evacuated and the residents relocated to homes of relatives. Speaking to TSF, Duarte Pereira, president of the Parish of Monte hopes that next week a study will be done on the support of the wall to allow the return of residents of Travessa dos Poços to their homes.

Forecasts now admit that the water discharge from Saturday may pass to the side of Madeira.

‘Calamity’ would prevent construction in affected areas.

Today’s main news headline : Solidarity in force – The determination of the Madeirans in the recovery after the storm is having a notable benefit : in the solidarity [fund raising] accounts alone there are €2 million. But groups such as ‘Pingo Doce’ are making their own contributions. The Madeira Beer Company is also restocking outlets in the worst affected areas in Funchal and Ribeira Brava ‘on the house’.

"There is only one Madeira" The president of the Republic thought highly of the recovery effort in Funchal and visited problem areas such as Tabua. He needed to tread in the mud and wander around in the rain, but Cavaco Silva didn’t avoid the problems. "Shoes are plentiful, but there is only one Madeira" he declared. The main picture shows Cavaco in Ribeira Brava, inspecting the remains of the old bridge. The popular view is that the bridge was damaged, probably beyond repair, purely by the force of the water, but that isn’t the full story. One of many stories yet to be told when the dust settles, unless someone can enlighten us beforehand?

500 vehicles damaged – The damage calculations in the ‘car park Madeira’ suggests as much as €7.5 million.

The main sport / football headline today : Solidarity [fund raising] match may be in Madrid – The Spanish football federation forgives the ‘highlighting’ of "Madeira" by CR9 [Cristiano Ronaldo]. Referring to the t-shirt incident of the Madeiran footballer during a Real Madrid match, as mentioned yesterday. It would be shame, but given the low level of support for football matches on Madeira, the potential for fund raising would probably be much greater in Spain, bizarre as it seems.

Ellen has kindly covered some of these stories in the ‘blog comments’ … many thanks.

On the TV news (RTP) this morning, the cost of repairing the flood damage in Funchal has been estimated at €200 million. I guess that is just for public property, and the city businesses will have to claim through their insurance policies.

There has also been a warning on the radio about the quality of water, where supplies were affected by the floods. The advice is to boil water, or add bleach, depending what the water is to be used for.

Just announced at 12.20 pm today by the Regional Government the reinstatement, some with alterations, of many of the bus routes cancelled since Saturday. It was a lot of information, probably best obtained from the website(s) of Horários and Rodoeste.

If anyone else can oblige with the translation of any of the ‘blank’ or sparsely filled headlines, or other news stories, here is the link. All contributions much appreciated.

Many thanks to Paul for sending this in :

Friendship and support from Jersey – My homeland has launched an urgent appeal for the victims of the Madeiran floods. The overseas aid charity Jersey Side By Side is urging Islanders to co-ordinate any fundraising efforts into one larger appeal which Side By Side will run and endorse.

It is hoped that as much money as possible can be raised, but also that the appeal will act as a symbol of friendship and support to the Madeiran community both in Jersey and Madeira. Jersey Side By Side chairman Mike Wavell said that Jersey’s close relationship to Madeira meant it was important for Islanders to show their support.

A concert in aid of the appeal is already being organised by a group of young Jersey musicians currently in Madeira. It is hoped the event will take place on Saturday 6 March at St Thomas’ Church. LINK

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

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Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Madeira flood news, updates, other information ; The Diario de Noticias front pages

Der — Wed, 24 Feb 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – from Der … Another of the Ribeira Brava, and this was some hours after the flood subsided. I have had other photos sent in, many thanks, but with so many emails to get through, it will take me a while to get settled again. Especially if my internet connection continues to have problems.

Thanks folks for the enquiries about my welfare, I am fine. No internet or phone connections put me out of action, with just a half hour access on Sunday, but I am safe and dry. I am just seeing this afternoon for the first time TV coverage of the catastrophe, so while I have seen so much locally, I guess I am the least well informed visually as far as Madeira as a whole goes.

I have nearly 600 emails to get through, I will have to delete most of it unread, so sorry about that if you have contacted me, but I can’t see any other option. I will post something more as soon as I can, sometime tomorrow hopefully, but please continue to use the blog comments to communicate and leave news for now. Many thanks to those who have provided such information over the last few days.

The only news I have had the last 4+ days has come from the radio and locals, and I have a head crammed with information, far too much to post here, and most of it now out of date. Here are a few of the more important points :

This is from news through to this morning, some of it is for sure a bit old now. Check before you act on anything please.

1. Charities / helping : CARITAS started a new relief charity helpline. Contact details and bank account are :

Bank – Banif – Account – 1626371377
IBAN – 003800011626371377113

Telephone: +351 291743331
E-mail: caritasfunchal@netmadeira.com
Website: http://www.caritas.pt/funchal/

2. 42 were confirmed dead, but that was reduced again to 39 in a report today after an actual body count, but there is talk of another body found in Funchal today. There were over 70 hospitalised yesterday, and around 600 people made homeless, and talk of a new neighbourhood being built to rehome them. There are still people categorised as "missing", or unaccounted for, but the lack of communications prevents any firm confirmation of the situation although the original estimates have been reducing dramatically and today’s Diário says it is now just 18.

3. Only Vodafone and Optimus mobile networks were working. TMN started coming back Sunday night, but not for everyone in one go. Landlines were / are also down. CaboTV / Zon has also been out of service, but is coming back gradually. There may be more disruptions in communications.

4. People are repeatedly being asked not to go into the affected areas ’sightseeing’ … they are hindering clean up operations and endangering themselves and others. Also we are asked not to park cars in areas which need to be cleaned up.

5. Most schools have now reopened outside of Funchal and Ribeira Brava, some others with no water also remain closed.

6. Funchal has a few limited bus services up and running. Details may be on the Horários website. Just a few buses from Rodoeste are running, and they seem to be all on the Funchal route.

7. Several thousand families had / have no electricity, and around 30,000 have no water (no recent update on numbers unfortunately). The assessment of the water situation was still being undertaken, but the original opinion of the man responsible for water was that we are looking at a few days to return to normal supplies. Some water provided after reconnection may not be drinkable initially.

8. A survey is being carried out in Funchal harbour etc. to evaluate the amount of material deposited in the sea, carried by the flood water, to ensure that the water is still deep enough for shipping.

Sunday’s Diário de Notícias front page looked like this. You don’t need me to translate.

Monday’s front page : "Recovery and fear"

Tuesday’s front page : "Rumours concern".

I suppose it is inevitable that the nervousness of a population will start rumours, even dangerous rumours. In Ribeira Brava town on Monday, there was a bit of normality returning at around 11 am, with plenty of people milling around and the clean up operation in full swing. Half an hour later the town was pretty much emptied, and just about all the shops and bars had closed again, and the exit road on the Campanário road was blocked with a mass of traffic and people trying to evacuate. The rumour was that a mountainside was about to collapse at the back of town. People were panicking, some were crying, and nearly everyone was phoning a relative and spreading the rumour. I had the radio on at the time and the president of Ribeira Brava was clear in the message that that was no danger in the town, and that people should stay at home, but people were unaware or continued to evacuate anyway.

There was also, according to the radio, a rumour about evacuating Funchal. Again rubbish. There should be information on the official tourism website in various languages, and there is also a Twitter page updated with government communications (it was read out too quickly on the radio for me to write down, but if someone can find it and it has English translations, please post it in the comments).

Today’s front page : "2 years to rebuild".

Without TV or internet access I really had no real idea, in a visual sense, what was going on elsewhere on the island. Sunday night I managed to borrow a Diário de Notícias, and a Jornal da Madeira, and I was horrified at some of the pictures I saw of the floods in full flow and the damage caused in Funchal. Of course that was pretty much it at that stage … Funchal. I have heard stories about other parts of the South coast of Madeira, and they sound equally horrific, but the communication breakdown is preventing a full picture, and what I have been hearing may be vastly distorted by the rumour mill.

The President of the Republic, Cavaco Silva, is visiting Madeira this afternoon.

UPDATE :

Depression may bring heavy rain on Friday – One should keep a look out for the weather forecast over the next few hours. "More intense rainfall will occur in the sea northwest of Madeira," said meteorologist Paula Leitão. Strong winds and precipitation are likely as the depression passes, but nothing like that experienced on Saturday.

More later maybe … especially if someone would be kind enough to contribute something … FOR NOW PLEASE PUT ANY IMPORTANT NEWS IN THE BLOG COMMENTS, AND IF AND WHEN I GET INTERNET ACCESS I WILL MOVE IT. PLEASE DON’T EMAIL ME ANYTHING IMPORTANT FOR NOW IN CASE I DON’T HAVE INTERNET ACCESS.

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’

Water, water everywhere … & lots of mud too. Ribeira Brava flood special 20 February 2010

Der — Sun, 21 Feb 2010 17:30:00 +0000

Mud ankle deep, and water knee deep met many of those who left their front doors this Saturday morning. Torrential rain throughout the night fulfilled the weather forecasters dire prediction all over Madeira. As I type this, I count myself lucky to have electricity, but no home telephone, no internet, no mobile phone, no TV, but luckily a radio station was still operating, telling similar stories all over Madeira. There was no traffic in downtown Ribeira Brava, even several hours after the worst had passed, with roads impassable with logs, mud, water, and all sorts of other debris littering the cobbles and tarmac.

The force and volume of the water was so great and so high that it took out both walls on the second bridge back from the sea front. Add to that torrents of mud coming down both sides of the valley, along the roads, and through the numerous new waterfalls created. The combination of these events led to water laden with thick brown mud invading the front end of the town. The deepest water I saw remaining was in the São Bento church square, where it was level with the wall that separates it from the children’s play area.

Later in the day, the same bridge collapsed on one side, and was closed off. A large fissure also developed in one of the arches. For sure Ribeira Brava has lost one of it’s oldest and most famous landmarks, as the damage seems just too major for repairs. Also later in the day a pavement alongside the river (outside the police station) also collapsed, leaving the top of a planted tree sticking out of the huge cavity.

When the wind dropped and the rain eased off, I ventured into town and took these pictures. Ordinary people were helping out in the street, alongside a full contingent of emergency services vehicles and crew, and it looks like the council had it’s complete workforce out in the streets trying to ease the situation. People were collecting logs and constructing dams to stop the water entering their streets to protect their homes. The most popular tool seemed to be the common dustpan, use to scoop up the thick mud to put in-between the logs used to construct the mini dams.

The sea was pretty rough, but I have seen worse. Thick with mud, and the debris was so thick that the waves were breaking over the debris rather than the beach, which was probably a blessing.

I wandered around for an hour taking pictures, stunned by the sight each time I turned a corner. Not a shop or café was open. Lots of people milling around, many looking equally stunned, but the cameras were out in force nether-the-less. A town already well down on it’s luck for economic reasons will be hit hard by this mini-disaster, that will take weeks to clear up, and months and even years to effect all the repairs.

You probably already realise that I wrote this for yesterday, but of course losing the internet connection prevented me posting, and I didn’t get the internet back until after 5 pm today (Sunday). Today in town, there are still some shocking sights, but the clean up operation is going really well.

Madeira Classical Orchestra plays tonight ; New Toyota dealership ; Cost of living hurting

Der — Sat, 20 Feb 2010 03:00:00 +0000

Today’s photo – Many thanks to Tom … "strange light on the sea during sun rise".

Many thanks to Becky for these web snippets :

"Madeira has a long and venerable tradition of cocktail-making, based partly in the island’s colonial past and partly in local drinking habits. The colonial side is best exemplified at Reid’s Palace Hotel, the most famous and exclusive on the island, where they serve Martinis, Manhattans and all the other classics. The demotic side is exemplified by the cheap, explosively fiery rum (here called aguardente) which forms the alcoholic basis of poncha." BOOZY WEEKEND?

Lizards eating sugar, bananas and fingers. Do not watch if you’re at all lizard-phobic!

Vanessa Swesnik very kindly sent in this complete article translation ORIGINAL HERE

União Comercial opens facilities. União Comercial, the company that markets automobiles for the Japanese brand, Toyota, in Madeira spent over two million Euros to construct a building from scratch in São Martinho parish, which will hold all of its administrative and commercial services.

The grand opening will be next Friday, on the 19^th of this month. The new building has a total area of 2,400 square meters and meets the need to offer even better service and attention to the client, said Francisco Tavares, manager of the company, to the DIÁRIO.

Toyota automobile sales will now be centralized at 40 Caminho do Poço Barral; garage and post-sales assistance will still be provided in Cancela at the Mendes, Gomes, Lda. facility, an affiliate and Volvo dealer in the Autonomous Region.

Toyota automobiles have enjoyed immense popularity with the people of Madeira for many years. For the past three years, the brand was among Top 3 sales for Madeira. Last year, the brand sold 360 new vehicles on the archipelago and was in first place until the month of November. Christmas sales dropped them to third place. Either way, it is evidence of the prestige and level of satisfaction the brand has earned among Madeirans, acknowledges Francisco Tavares.

With another exterior stand on the roundabout that divides traffic between Pica dos Barcelos and MadeiraShopping, União Comerical now has a team of 20 employers. With the Mendes, Gomes, Lda. workers, the group has close to 90 employees.

An extra article from Elaine, repeated from yesterday, as I didn’t post it until after 7 pm :

Emanuel Salvador plays with the CMO and Ferreira Lobo
Directed by maestro Ferreira Lobo, violinist Emanuel Salvador will play on Saturday. The young Portuguese violinist Emanuel Salvador will play on Saturday February 20 at 21.00 with the Madeira Classical Orchestra, a concert led by José Ferreira Lobo, conductor of the Orquestra do Norte and artistic director of Festival Opera Portimão. Born in 1981, Emanuel Salvador is concertmaster of the Orquestra do Norte.

The program consists of the Concerto for Violin and Orchestra in D Major Opus 61, by Beethoven, Symphony No. 8 in B minor, the ‘Unfinished’, by Schubert, and the Hungarian Dances nos. 1, 3 and 5 by Brahms. Tickets are available Monday to Friday between 13.00 and 17.00 hours in the Tourist Office, Avenida Arriaga, and at the venue (the Congress Centre of Madeira Casino) between 19.00 and 21.00 hours.

Emanuel Salvador has performed in prestigious concert halls in England (St. Martin-in-the-Fields, Southwark Cathedral) in Kazakhstan (Philharmonic Hall), Mexico, Netherlands, Portugal (Centro Cultural de Belém, Gulbenkian Museum) Germany (Palatin, Wiesloch), Spain (Centre for Performing Arts, Salamanca), Italy and Malta (Manoel Theatre). He has won prizes at national and international competition level: 1st prize in the contest ‘Isolde Menges’ (RCM) and Beckenham Festival, Barbirolli Memorial and Wolfson Foundation Award, 2nd prize at the Young Musicians, Honorable Mention at the Julio Cardona International Competition, among others. He won a scholarship to the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation from 2000 to 2003, and in 2008 and 2009 to the Instituto Camões. He graduated Bachelor of Music in London at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama and gained a Master’s Degree in Musical Performance from the Royal College of Music.

Many thanks to Elaine once again for a couple of web snippets and yesterday’s top news stories :

Portugal outperforms Eurozone Portugal is slowly forcing the spotlight off its national economy by this week, once again showing the state of its finances to be far better than the image being portrayed by some analysts beyond its borders. Support for Lisbon’s view that its economy is firmly set on the path to full recovery has been backed up by figures released by Eurostat, the European Union’s official research agency, indicating Portugal outperformed its Eurozone partners during the final quarter of last year …

Madeira suits me to tee. AN EARLY alarm call signals the start of our first day on the island of eternal spring. It’s pitch black outside as we take a bleary-eyed breakfast in the ornate dining room at the Quinta Serra Golfe, our hotel set in woodland on the edge of the pretty village of Santo da Serra. However, by the time we reach the Santo da Serra Golf Club, less than a mile away, the sky is brightening rapidly. The ocean spreads out below us and the mist drifting down from the mountains disperses as the sun bathes Madeira’s premier course …

DIÁRIO 19/02/2010

FRONT PAGE NEWS

Santa Cruz and Ponta do Sol ask for help with coastal protection. The Council of Santa Cruz asked the Regional Secretariat for Social Equipment to place concrete breakwaters, ‘pés de galinha’, in the sea in front of the swimming pools of Praia das Palmeiras, to protect the area from the strong waves that often occur. Every year, the council has to repair the damage to the pools and they want to be ready for when the weather improves and people use the beach. The council has asked informally for help and soon will send a formal letter. The actual impact of the flooding is not yet known as they are waiting for the weather to improve before they attempt any repairs. There has been no major damage but the engine room for the pools has been flooded and railings destroyed. Unlike the beach at Calheta, the beach at Machico has not lost sand or had many stones dragged onto it. It lies sheltered in a cove and the main impact of the bad weather has been debris from a stream that flows alongside the beach. The pool at Porto da Cruz has suffered major damage that occurs every year. Without the capacity or authority to take action to protect the sea front, the Mayor of Ponta do Sol has promised to raise awareness with the authorities responsible for the public maritime domain. The beach at Ponta do Sol was damaged last December and there was some erosion and damage to properties at Lugar de Baixo. The mayor had previously wanted the seawall relocated further away from the beach at Ponta do Sol.

MADEIRA

Earth is the theme for the Flower Festival. This year, the Flower Festival will take place between the 15th and 18th April. There will be the usual initiatives: flower carpet; Flower Exhibition; folk groups performing in the streets and classical music concerts. The Wall of Hope ceremony in the Town Square in Funchal, involving thousands of children, will take place on the morning of April 17th. The Flower Parade will be held on the afternoon of Sunday April 18th.

ECONOMY

Living in Madeira is more expensive. Madeirans are paying more for services and products. This is the conclusion that can be drawn from the fact that in January, the Index of Consumer Prices was higher than the previous month by 0.2 percentage points. The Index measures changes in prices of a basket of goods and services considered representative of consumption by the population in that area. The only class of items that decreased in average price was Food and Non-Alcoholic Beverages. The largest increases were recorded for Clothing and Footwear, followed by Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco, then Transport. Although it is difficult to directly compare regions, the most expensive area to live in last year was the Azores, then the Algarve and thirdly, Madeira. At a national level, the Index of Consumer Prices fell 0.3% compared to last December. The cost of living will be influenced by the 3.6% increase in labour costs in the last quarter of last year. The index of labour costs reflects the average cost of labour for each hour actually worked, including pay and costs to the employer. The highest increases in labour costs were for farmers and qualified workers in agriculture and fishing, then officials and senior company staff followed by professional and scientific specialists.

Stocklet offers low prices in Dolce Vita in Funchal. The Dolce Vita commercial mall in Funchal is going to host from 19 – 28 February, Stocklet, an activity that offers shoppers the opportunity to make purchases at lower prices and benefit from special promotions. The campaign involves stores from all sectors, including clothing, telecommunications, bookshops, food, utilities and accessories, among others. Stocklet is an initiative of Dolce Vita which aims to sell the end of season stock at reduced prices as well as have exclusive promotions for customers.

POLITICS

Nunes wants to protect the vale dos Salgados. A deputy of CDU-Madeira, Leonel Nunes, argued in Camacha for the designation ‘protected landscape’ for the Núcleo Habitacional dos Salgados. In this parish, the community is concerned about the ‘appetite’ for housing and think this status will prevent environmental destruction in one of the most beautiful valleys of Madeira. The Núcleo Habitacional (core housing / traditional housing) has been ‘abandoned’ and he asks for the support of the Council of Santa Cruz in the allocation of the status of protected landscape.

Accounts of CMF in Belém. Miguel Albuquerque, the Mayor of Funchal, is back in Lisbon to try to keep, as stipulated in the 2010 State Budget, the transfer of 5% of IRS to the councils in Madeira. He is only negotiating for 2010 although in 2009, Funchal Council lost 5 million Euros, a case that is to be heard in the Administrative Court. In 2010, the amount that should be transferred from Portugal to Funchal is 500,000 Euros per month. He will meet parliamentary groups and Cavaco Silva (President of Portugal) next week. After last February, the funds were continued to be transferred to the councils on the Continent but not to those in Madeira and the Azores, despite negotiations.

CULTURE

Folklore and Ethnography Group of Boa Nova to go to Canada. A trip to Canada, from the 4 – 19 August, for the VII European Week of Folklore. There will also be Russian, Italian and possibly Spanish and Indian groups taking part. Grupo de Folclore e Etnográfico da Boa Nova will participate in the Festas de Nossa Senhora do Monte in August for the Madeiran community in Toronto and Montreal.

Over a thousand students visit the Centro das Artes in 2009. To motivate the younger generation to cultural knowledge is a challenge increasingly important given the competition of various means of entertainment. This Arts Centre in Calheta opened its doors to schoolchildren last year with good results. Last year, there were 40 visits involving more than 1,000 students. The children are exposed to various different types of art, for example dance, music, plays, sculpture and visual arts.

JORNAL DA MADEIRA

FRONT PAGE NEWS

Woman who threatened to camp had rejected help. Update of report on 12 February. The woman who last week threatened to camp in front of the Town Hall if her housing situation was not resolved, had lived outside Funchal and refused to comply with the stipulations of the Homeless Shelter. She had refused to take part in an integration project, a necessity as the Night Shelter is only for people in transition. This 42 year old woman rejected everything that was proposed by the Housing Department of Funchal. She refused a room to rent, wanting a house and also rejected computer courses and others. Social Security provided medication which she would not take. Since Tuesday, she has left the shelter after spending the weekend with friends.

EVENTS

Scottish tourists lost in the levada das Babosas. A Scottish couple, aged 72 and 74, ignored the Civil Protection warnings to avoid walks in the serras in the bad weather. They ventured on the vereda between Babosas and Curral dos Romeiros, became lost and requested aid. They made a small fire to help the Fire Department locate them and they were accompanied to the exit at Bom Sucesso then taken to their hotel. This operation took nearly four hours.

Strong gusts felt in São Jorge and Areeiro had the most rain. Between 9 am on February 17th to 17.00 yesterday, the Meteorology Observatory of Funchal recorded a gust of wind of 159.1 km/h in São Jorge. In Caniçal, another record of 155.1 km/h and 100.8 km/h in Aeeiro. The stations at Areeiro and Calheta/Ponta do Pargo registered the most rain falling in 10 minutes. The highest amount was 6.2 mm at 08.50 yesterday. For total rainfall, the station at Areeiro registered 128.2 mm. Temperature ranged from a minimum of 1.5 degrees Celsius at Areeiro at 09.40 to a maximum of 18.7 degrees in Funchal at 15.30.

More later maybe … especially if someone would be kind enough to contribute something …

You can email blog@madeira4u.com with any large contributions and photos / videos.

—————————————————————————————————————————————–

Please use the comments here for general chit-chat, or feel free to ask any questions … someone usually has an answer.

The headline news & other snippets reviewed here on the blog are mainly from the Diário de Notícias of Madeira, although news from any source is used and welcome.

The blogs in the ‘uncategorised’ category come from the old madeira4u blog.

IF YOU NEED HELP WITH ANYTHING ON THIS WEBSITE, TRY THE MENU ON THE RIGHT HAND SIDE ‘USEFUL LINKS’ & ‘TIPS & HELP’