Situation as at 0730 hrs

As at 0730 hrs (Lisbon time) the Azores civil protection services has registered about 50 occurrences due to the passing of Hurricane “Lorenzo”.  These involve mainly involve:  “obstruction of roads, falling trees and fallen roof tiles”, “in Flores, Pico and Faial.  Two people were relocated on the island of Sao Jorge, the Regional Government said. On Faial Island, a bus stop was totally destroyed. Upcoming hours are still critical.

Hurricane “Lorenzo” is now down to Category 1, at the intensity expected by the Azorean Civil Protection. “We are following the whole process and we think the peak will be around 06:00 [07:00 in mainland Portugal],” said Teresa Machado Luciano.

The maximum gust so far, is 145 kph was recorded on the island of Faial in the central group, followed by 130 Kph in Flores and 126 kph in Corvo.  A total of 61 roads have already been closed on several islands of the Azores.

The commander of the Santa Cruz das Flores Fire Department told Lusa today that the road in the Monte Zone in Santa Cruz das Flores is closed due to the fall of a large tree due to from the passage of Hurricane “Lorenzo”.

The closest proximity from the centre of Hurricane “Lorenzo” to the island of Flores should be around 100 kms at 6:00 today (07:00 in Lisbon

The Azores IPMA also confirmed that the critical period of Hurricane “Lorenzo” will run until 9:00 am in the region (10:00 am in Lisbon), mostly affecting Flores and Corvo.

FLIGHT CANCELLATIONS

SATA has announced that it will cancel flights scheduled for Wednesday, March 2, until 4 pm, due to the passing of Hurricane Lorenzo. There are 24 flights, with only two connecting to the mainland and the rest are regional, which are suspended, with 873 passengers being affected, according to the airline.

SATA states that “all affected passengers will be accommodated on flights from October 2-4.”

EMERGENCY RESPONSE

Nearly 1,000 operatives, including firefighters, public officials, health professionals and security forces, are being deployed at dawn in the Azores to respond to the passage of Hurricane “Lorenzo” through the archipelago.

The president of the Azores Regional Civil Protection and Fire Service also said that “some people were relocated in Praia da Vitória,” by the municipality, as a preventive measure, “for living in degraded housing”.

Lorenzo” is affecting the entire archipelago, but “especially” the island of Flores and Corvo, according to the IPMA, underlining that the effects of the storm will start to feel progressively early in the morning and Wednesday morning. .