Bad weather caused widespread delays at Palma airport on Tuesday 6 May due to heavy rain. Airport authority Aena confirmed that most arrivals were affected by the storm early this morning. No cancellations have been necessary so far. Sources have specified that they have been forced to implement some air traffic control measures, as Mallorca is currently under the influence of a storm.
The delays have been caused by the presence of a cumulonimbus cloud, which is a type of cloud with a large vertical development, dense and associated with heavy rain, thunderstorms and, sometimes, hail or snow. It is a very powerful cloud that can generate extreme weather phenomena.
The rain that fell during the early hours of Tuesday morning in Palma also caused numerous leaks at the airport, some of which were so severe that areas of the check-in and boarding areas had to be closed. In many parts of the passenger access area for departing flights from Son Sant Joan, buckets have been placed to collect water falling from the upper floor, which is currently closed for renovation, and from the roof of the building. Some areas have been cordoned off with screens to prevent passengers from passing through, as it is impossible to prevent the floor from becoming flooded.
Workers at the airport and cleaning staff have been working since the early hours of the morning placing buckets under the leaks and removing water to prevent accidents. The state-owned airport management company, Aena, has been carrying out renovation work on the facilities at Son Sant Joan for several months.
For Tuesday, the AEMET met. office forecasts cloudy intervals with showers that, mainly in the north of the island, may be locally heavy and accompanied by storms, tending to become mostly clear in the afternoon. Temperatures will remain largely unchanged, or decrease during the day, with the lowest temperatures occurring at the end of the day. Winds will be light to moderate from the north with coastal breezes in the afternoon.