COUNTING THE COSTS

By Humphrey Carter PARTS of the Balearics remained on storm alert yesterday, primarily for gale force winds, with sea routes to Minorca closed for the second consecutive day while repair work continued in Majorca. Calvia Council has received nearly 200 claims for storm damage compensation over the past few days, the vast majority from residents living in El Toro, and yesterday construction workers continued to repair the block of flats in El Toro seriously damaged when the area was hit by a tornado last Friday. Part of the sea-facing side of the El Toro apartment block was literally blown away but 100 apartments were damaged in total, at least 50 losing all their windows. They are now facing repairs bills of between 10'000 and 12'000 euros with many residents unsure whether their insurance companies will cover the costs of the “natural disaster” or not. Some residents have spent the past few days in alternative accommodation, having packed up as much of their apartments as possible for protection while work is carried out, rebuilding exterior walls and terraces. Many proprietors are foreign, living overseas and some have flown over specially to oversee repair work. The bar underneath the block of flats built some 30 years ago was also severely damaged, but the owners and staff say they are just lucky to be alive. One resident spoke of how at 10.30am last Friday she went to wake her 11-year-old daughter. As she approached her daughter's bed, the terrace windows were blown in, causing slight cuts to her legs.