MADRID – The mayor of Madrid on Thursday asked the central government to declare Spain’s capital a disaster zone, warning that damage caused by last weekend’s snowstorm would cost at least 1.4 billion euros , or $ 1.7 billion, to fix.
Mayor José Luis Martínez-Almeida said at a news conference that the disaster designation would release emergency funds and ensure that “all people who have suffered damage can be compensated as quickly as possible”.
Madrid has struggled to reopen its streets to traffic and clean up the piles of snow that covered the city on Friday and Saturday. The storm, dubbed Filomena, brought the biggest blizzard Madrid has seen in almost 50 years, shedding more than a foot of snow on the 6.6 million people living in and around the city.
On Thursday, city officials warned that it would take several days to clear all roads, a task delayed by freezing weather conditions that are expected to last until mid-next week. Spain’s meteorological office predicted on Thursday that this 10-day period of freezing temperatures would be the longest period of this type of climate to hit Madrid in two decades.
Madrid airport was closed for most of the weekend and only resumed its normal flight schedule on Thursday, while schools and sports centers are expected to remain closed until Monday.
The blizzard also destroyed parks around the capital, with damage reported to 11,000 of the 17,000 trees in Parque do Retiro, according to local authorities.
More than 700 soldiers were sent to help municipal services clear snow in Madrid and the neighboring region of Castilla-La Mancha. Despite their efforts, 127 roads remained completely closed to traffic on Thursday.
The storm paralyzed Madrid, disrupting transportation across the country, just as Spain was entering its third wave of the coronavirus pandemic. On Wednesday, Spain’s Ministry of Health recorded the highest number of new cases since the pandemic hit Spain in March. The country’s Covid-19 death toll, more than 53,000, is one of the highest in Europe.
Snow also interrupted the country’s vaccination campaign, which started in late December. In Madrid, many health professionals were forced to work extra shifts to cover colleagues who were unable to reach hospitals because of snow and ice.