Madeira News Blog

(17th September). ‘Secret Houses Bother Councils – The local authorities hide numbers and even support illegalities. The lack of paperwork leaves the occupants in difficulties’. The vast majority of the houses were built in the 1970′s and 80′s and are located in Funchal, Machico, and Câmara de Lobos. The story is nearly always the same, and the complications too. When life changes and a bank loan is required or someone else enters the equation, nothing can be done because the house was built without consent and is not registered. The câmaras don’t know the extent of the problem, but there are hundreds in the locations mentioned. The councils try to work around the problems so that occupants have water, sewerage and electricity connections. Some even try to lessen the impact on the landscape by providing materials for the owners, such as paint, tiles, and building materials (presumably to help them blend in and look acceptable?). Funchal is mentioned as having given such materials free of charge to people in the high zones, who don’t have the money to pay for them themselves. Often such assistance was misdirected. The problem occurred when there was an acute housing shortage, and in the case of Câmara de Lobos, assistance was offered by the council by allowing utility connections without the required permits, and there are hundreds of such houses in that district alone. It is not easy or cheap to legalise such houses, with lawyers finding legal obstacles in the process that can take years to resolve. Sometimes it is not possible at all because the ‘plots’ are too small for legal building, and the câmaras cannot issue permits to legalise the situation. Meanwhile the owners cannot sell the properties, and banks will not allow mortgages.

‘He Ordered A Funeral But Was Saved Through The Agency -  Morbid and highly unusual. The case occurred on Porto Santo’. Yesterday morning the staff of a hotel and a funeral agency managed to prevent a death through a suicide attempt by a pensioner, a guest at the the hotel. The man who wanted to end his own life, ordered his own funeral, and even had his own burial suit ready own his hotel room. He had asked for anonymity at the hotel, and on Tuesday had asked the hotel reception not to put through any calls or disturb him after 9.30 am. The funeral director turned up in the hotel reception as requested by the man, and asked to speak to the guest, but the telephone was not answered, and eventually a maid was sent along to the room. The room door was open, and the maid, seeing traces of blood on the floor and bed, raised the alert. Help was summoned, and the man was found still on the bathroom floor with his wrists slashed, but still alive. He was taken to the local health centre, and then to Madeira by air. A suicide note was found alongside the burial suit, with instructions on what to do after his death.

‘Fraudsters Attack On Madeira’. Two women posing as social security workers tried to enter a house in Santo Serra yesterday. The two women, aged around 20 and 40, are believed to be trying to rob elderly people living in isolated locations. The intended victim alerted the Diário to warn others of the danger, but was not actually robbed due to her cautious actions. A spokesperson for Social Security said that their employees are obliged to show identification before entering private premises.

‘Archive Shows ‘Legacies To The History’. The ‘Arquivo Regional’ will have on show items donated for the exhibition ‘Legados para a história’, which opens to the public on 24th September, continuing until 21st October. The exhibition will be housed in the lobby of the Arquivo Regional da Madeira, showing exhibits donated & acquired (loaned?) from people and private collections between 2005 and 2008. The complete collection comprises over 5,000 photographs, and 169 maps, plans, and drawings. The archive is always looking to acquire new material, and people who have documents or items of interest but don’t want to donate them, can take them along for microfilming or scanning.

Today’s main front page photo is taken outside the stadium of Nacional, with many things being delivered and set up, including TV cameras : ‘Europa League Brings Hundreds Of Tourists – Spanish and Austrians arrange special flights’. It’s probably the biggest game in the club’s history for Nacional, as they take on Werder Bremen. ‘The Circus Is Already Assembled’, refers to a number of changes and improvements demanded by UEFA, at the Stadium of Madeira in the Choupana, in order for the match to take place. The smell of fresh paint still hangs in the air, and everything has now been done to meet the UEFA requirements. The game tonight between Nacional and Werder Bremen is considered ‘high risk’, and around 70 police officers will be in attendance. Some officers will be in ‘plain clothes’ and will mingle in with both sets of fans. Everyone will be searched on entry using metal detectors. I know the Germans don’t have the best of reputations when it comes to problems with fans at football matches, but I can’t imagine that the fans of Nacional cause any concern, despite what UEFA think.

‘Coach Of Werder Bremen Is Enchanted With The Location Of The Stadium Of Nacional’. I can’t find this story, but I certainly agree with him … except when the mist or cloud comes down that is.

The match is on SportTV 1 at 8.05 pm.

‘New Screening Unit For The Beginning Of 2010 – The mobile screening unit is aimed at early detection of breast cancer’. The agreement was signed yesterday between the regional health service SESARAM and the bank Espírito Santo. The new acquisition is a welcome contribution in reducing backlogs in screening, that have been up to 7 or 8 months. There is one unit already in use, but at 10 years old is showing signs of wear and tear. The regional secretary for Social Affairs, Francisco Jardim Ramos, said that there are around 120 new cases of breast cancer detected on Madeira each year, but 80% of the cases are treatable because they are detected early enough.

Funchal Council are looking at the idea of giving parking discounts of 50% to environmentally friendly vehicles. A change to municipal regulations is set to be discussed next week. The change is expected to cover both electric and hybrid powered vehicles. To take advantage of the scheme, owners of such vehicles will need to go to Funchal Council offices to obtain a permit.

‘Police Identify Alleged Robber’. Police believe they have identified one of the two masked men who appeared at Elos cash and carry in Viveiros in Funchal, armed with a knife, and who forced checkout staff to hand over "a significant sum". (See yesterday’s blog). No mention of an arrest yet, but it appears that the other robbery reported, at a hotel reception, was carried out by a different pair of criminals.

At one of his inaugurations yesterday, president Jardim used the occasion to announce that he has already ordered the removal of the fences from the Marina of Lugar de Baixo, with the clean up work barely finished, regardless of ongoing legal issues. "I am a revolutionary. This is how I work, acting in the interest of the people" he said.

‘Journalists For ‘Good Health’ Visit Madeira And Porto Santo – French, Italians and Germans in the Region’. The Association for the Promotion of Madeira, is supporting the organisation of three trips for the media from Germany, France and Italy, each with seven journalists from various sectors on the themes of spa tourism and good health (well being). The first French initiative is also being supported by Portugal Tourism based in France, and TAP airline in France, and those journalists arrive on Sunday.

From yesterday’s Jornal da Madeira : ‘SORT-MAC Project Starts In October – The aim is to restore pathways and place signs in the Ilhas Desertas and Ponta de São Lourenço’. The project has support from the European Union, and on Madeira will be organised by the Directorate for the Environment, jointly with the National Park Service. Information boards will also be put in place, once a survey has been carried out to determine the best locations.

(11th July). ‘Police Stoned In Nogueira – Another violent night in a black week: Residents jeer and throw stones and rocks at the PSP officers that were trying to put an end to another quarrel’. Also this story linked to today’s main front page photo, ‘spooked up’ by the Diário for special effect. Not even gunshots fired into the air had any effect as police officers involved themselves in yet another night of brawling. The trouble started on Thursday night through to Friday morning, as locals started quarrelling aggressively again and making threats, but unlike earlier in the week, this time the police anti-crime unit were brought in, and their vehicle was bombarded with stones and bottles. Details are vague, but the crowd was made up of 20 – 30 men and women. Some residents have complained that the police overreacted to the situation. Nogueira is famous for being a trouble hotspot of Madeira, with all the associated problems of drugs, alcohol, and poverty.

‘Contingency Plan For Schools – The regional secretary has already informed the schools, at least in the first cycle, about the meeting on Tuesday’. The department for education has convened the meeting and invited heads and delegates in the 1st cycle schools, to discuss preventative measures for Gripe A influenza, and procedures to follow in the event of an outbreak.

’70 Madeiran youngsters compete in a tournament in Italy where 5 Cypriot athletes have already been hospitalised through Gripe A (Swine Flu)’. The handball tournament was about to be cancelled, after the 5 cases of Gripe A (H1N1) were confirmed, and no cases of the Madeiran children showing symptoms have been identified yet, and they are due to return to Madeira on Monday. 72 hours have passed since the Cypriots went to hospital, and with the period of risk of contagion being 24 hours it may be that the Madeiran squad is in the clear.

As at yesterday evening, there were 79 cases of Gripe A Swine Flu in Portugal, but nothing yet has hit Madeira, though the story above might still put an end to that. Luckily we do have a few empty islands we could use as quarantine zones if needed though.

In sport it seems that the Madeira Wine Rally is the flavour of the month : ‘Skoda Participation Confirmed’, and football is warming up too : ‘Teams of the 1st Division will know the 2009 / 2010 fixture list today’.

‘Almost Five Thousand Exams In The Second Phase’. The second phase of national exams, which runs from Monday to Thursday, will involve 4,887 exams being taken by students that missed the first phase in June, and those whose results were inadequate. In physics and chemistry there are more exams being taken in phase two than there were in the first phase. 

‘Experts come in October to discuss ‘Aedes aegypti’ – Yesterday, in UMa there was a presentation on technology for the genetic control of mosquito breeding’. The directorate of the Administrative Office of Health and Social Affairs (IASAÚDE) is considering bringing in international experts on mosquito control, in the continuing fight against the ‘Aedes aegypti’, that first arrived here several years ago. The president of IASAÚDE watched the presentation on the genetic controls methods in UMa (University of Madeira), but was not convinced that the method will provide the solution to the problem, and wants further expert advice to analyse the options.

(10th July). ‘Madeiran Agriculture Grew 50% In 5 Years – Data from the National Institute of Statistics reveals that the same indicator fell 8% at a national level’. In the years 2001 to 2006 the gross value grew from €44 million to €66 million. The gross value is the roughly the difference between the value of the goods produced, and the cost of the raw materials plus production costs. It sound like good news, but as always with the data released being so old, it’s impossible to make any assessment on the current situation.

‘SPEA-M Promotes Field Trip To The Ilhas Desertas – The initiative aims to offer contact to the Madeirans with the sea birds’. The Portuguese Society For The Study of Birds is making the trip on the weekend 25th-26th July with the objective of observing the birds that use the islands for nesting, and the trip will be run with the support of ‘Horizonte Atlântico’, who will provide the boat. "The desertas are still little known to much of the population of Madeira, and this is another opportunity for anyone to come to know these beautiful islands, where we can find small PASSERIFORMES(?), seabirds, and even the impressive Lobo-marinho (sea lion)", says the director of SPEA-M, Ana Isabel Fagundes. That’s followed by a list of birds that nest there, but I don’t have a clue what they are in English, except for the Cory’s Shearwater. Those interested should contact the organization by the 17th July on 967 232195 or by email at madeira@spea.pt.

‘Germany Has Already Taken 800 Dogs For Adoption – The animals fly to Germany … destination Rostock’. Since her first visit to Madeira 12 years ago Barbara Linkis has handled nearly 1,000 dogs to be adopted there. She admits to be fascinated by Madeira, but unfortunately has seen many animals suffering. She started off by being a helper at SPAD (Society for the Protection of Domestic Animals), spending her holidays caring for and feeding animals, and motivated to try and improve the situation. In her letter to the Diário she appeals to the Madeirans not to adopt a dog if they cannot properly care for it, and that the animals need to be sterilised. A true heroine!

Continuing the theme of SPAD in today’s Diário : ’1,400 Animals Abandoned – Already this year around 900 animals have been put-down, three times as many as there are adopted’. In recent times in SPAD, every month is a bad month, but July is traditionally worse. In the first 6 months this year just 365 animals have been adopted. The article states that those animals put to sleep were unsuitable for adoption, through injuries, old age, infectious diseases, or a general bad state, and in many cases they were abandoned litters unable to survive alone.

‘Lift Repairs Leave Old Lady Hostage’. The 92 year old women in Funchal has been unable to leave her home for a week because of successive lift breakdowns, and being unable to manage the 119 stairs. Luckily her neighbours have been able to do her shopping for her.

TODAY’S PHOTO : Thanks to Jon … Gizmo surveys the Ilhas Desertas.

Probably by now the most famous cat on Madeira, he looks to the islands and thinks are they really deserted … surely there must be some mice there somewhere?

Anyone who enjoys walking on Madeira might enjoy this website where people share their experiences : MADEIRA WALKING

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