According to information available on the ANA – Aeroportos de Portugal website, until 4:30 pm around 30 flights to and from Madeira, operated by several companies, were canceled at origin and two others diverged, affecting connections with several cities in Europe, including Lisbon.

The Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA) has placed the Madeira archipelago under orange warning until Sunday due to the passage of Depression Bernard, which translates into a “significant increase in wind intensity”, which can blow with “gusts of 100 kilometers per hour”, reaching “120 kilometers per hour in mountainous regions” and the increase in maritime agitation with waves that can reach 6.5 meters on the north coasts and on the island of Porto Santo.

The depression will then move towards the south coast of mainland Portugal from Sunday onwards, with “strong and locally very intense precipitation” being predicted in the Algarve and Baixo Alentejo from the morning, with “increased wind intensity and conditions favourable to the occurrence of thunderstorms and strong gusts”.

The orange warning – the second most serious on a scale of three – is issued whenever there is a "moderate to high risk meteorological situation", a situation that led the autonomous region's Institute of Forestry and Nature Conservation to close all recommended routes and to advise against carrying out any activity in forest areas while the alert is in effect.

In view of the warning issued by IPMA, the Regional Civil Protection Service of Madeira recommends that the population avoid traveling through areas with dilapidated buildings, due to the risk of landslides and falling trees, as well as paying attention to the structures set up (scaffolding, awnings , tents, roofs), as they may be affected by stronger gusts of wind.