The storm leaves dozens of Balearic people trapped in Catalonia without flights: "We don't know when we will be able to return"

PalmaWhat was supposed to be a weekend of human tower brotherhood in Tarragona has turned, for dozens of Mallorcans from the Llevant area, into a race against time to get back home. The storm that is especially affecting Catalonia has complicated this weekend and, especially, this Sunday, air operations and has caused flight delays and cancellations at the airports of Palma and Menorca, according to sources close to the matter.

Among those affected are members of the Mallorcan delegation that is in Tarragona for the Human Tower Competition, among other people from all over the Islands who have attended sporting and other events. The event had already had to modify its schedule due to the weather situation, but the problem went further as Sunday progressed, as return flights to Mallorca began to be cancelled in a trickle.

"There are people who have found themselves trapped here and now they do not know how they are going to do it to be able to return," explains one of the affected people. The main problem is that rebooking flights has become a complicated task, since they have not been offered any alternative, for the moment. Furthermore, if they finally do not have any option to travel this Sunday, they will have to look for accommodation at the last minute.

Storms force a reduction in operations

The meteorological situation has also complicated the work of air traffic controllers. The official account of the controllers on X described this Sunday as a "very complicated day" due to the storms in Barcelona and explained that they had to modify departure routes to avoid the affected areas.

As they explained, the crews could not follow the published routes, a fact that forced the controllers to separate the planes more from each other and, therefore, to reduce the number of operations.

"Another complicated day for air operations. Significant delays and probable cancellations for safety reasons," the controllers have warned. These restrictions have ended up affecting passengers trying to return to the Balearic Islands. At Palma airport, several incidents have been recorded this Sunday, including flight cancellations with Barcelona and also with Menorca.

In this regard, as the affected source explains, the situation has been a trickle of cancellations that has been making passengers nervous, especially because many have work obligations, pending family matters, or other logistical issues in Mallorca. This is the case for Pilar, who owns a school in Manacor and has already had to notify families that she will not be able to open the center tomorrow because she does not know if she will be able to reach the island. Like her, there are also other affected people who are teachers and other workers who should be in Mallorca on Monday.

"Now we are looking at how, starting tomorrow, because today it seems impossible, they can begin to return to Mallorca," she explains. The situation has forced passengers to be on the lookout for airline updates and relocation possibilities, at a time when the weather continues to be unstable in a good part of the Mediterranean.

Mallorca, also with a weather warning

The storm is also affecting Mallorca. The State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) maintains a yellow warning for the Serra de Tramuntana, the north, and the northeast of the island, with a forecast of rainfall that may leave up to 20 liters per square meter in one hour between 12:00 PM and 8:00 PM.

In this context, the meteorological situation continues to affect air connections and forces Mallorcans who are off the island to try to find a window of opportunity to return as soon as possible.