Azores Situation Report Wednesday 31st January 2024
35 incidents recorded on four islands in the Azores.
Bad weather in the Azores caused 35 incidents on four islands on Monday, the majority in the municipality of Ponta Delgada, in São Miguel, Civil Protection said, detailing that the situations included flooding in homes, roads and landslides.
According to a statement from the Azores Regional Civil Protection and Fire Service (SRPCBA), 25 of the incidents were in São Miguel, all in the municipality of Ponta Delgada.
The rest were in Faial (five), Graciosa (four) and Terceira (one).
“The reported situations were related to flooding in homes, flooding on roads and road obstructions”, further detailed the SRPCBA.
Firefighters, the Regional Directorate of Public Works, Forestry Services, Municipal Civil Protection Services, parish councils and the Public Security Police were on the ground.
150 tons of seaweed collected on two beaches in Ponta Delgada
The municipality of Ponta Delgada, in the Azores, collected 150 tons of algae on the beaches of Milícias and Pópulo, with the aim of “mitigating the concentration” of the species on the municipality’s beaches.
according to the municipality on the Island of São Miguel, the operation took place between January 17th and 23rd, with the support of a tractor, a trailer and a backhoe.
“Despite not posing a danger to human health or affecting water quality, this invasive species, which is abundant between the American coast and the African coast, reproduces easily, especially in deep, rocky and water-rich underwater areas. nutrients”, explains the municipality.
We were aiming to “mitigate the concentration of this species on the municipality’s beaches, the municipality immediately proceeded to clean the affected area”, the Ponta Delgada City Council also states in a press release.
The municipality recalls that the accumulation of seaweed in the coastal area “is a natural and cyclical phenomenon, usually derived from sea currents or meteorological conditions favourable to its development and movement”.
Although this phenomenon “occurs in the Atlantic in pelagic masses, in the Azores they occur in reduced size and quantity”.
Azores reduce tourist overnight stays in December to 120.5 thousand
The Azores recorded around 120,500 overnight stays in tourist accommodation in December 2023, 5.5% less than in the same period last year, according to estimates from the Regional Statistics Service (SREA)