Storm Harry batters Malta for 24 hours with strong winds, then a thunderstorm

Updated 9.39pm

Flights and ferries were diverted or cancelled, dozens of trees were torn down and shop fronts were wrecked as Storm Harry brought strong winds to Malta for more than 24 hours between Monday and Tuesday.

By mid-morning on Tuesday, the Civil Protection Department had responded to more than 180 incidents, while the army was called in to help vessels in rough seas.

High waves battered the coastline as winds reached 104 kilometres per hour (56 knots) at a Valletta weather station around 7am, and the public was warned to stay indoors. 

The storm hit on Monday evening and the Met Office's orange weather warnings - the second most severe - remained in place until 8pm. 

The strong winds gave way to heavy rainfall and thunder after 6pm, hitting all of Malta.

Flooding was reported in some streets while the Franciscan monks of Ta' Ġieżu church in Valletta issued a call for prayers, saying that the drains could not keep up and rainwater was flowing into the historic church.

 Their prayers were promptly answered, and they reported shortly after that a man had shown up and cleared a blockage.

There were lucky escapes for some people as the storm raged between Monday and Tuesday. A worker at a Marsascala restaurant was seconds away from being crushed by a glass door that was blown off its hinges by waves. And a Transport Malta worker described the terrifying moment his car was surrounded by waves in the same area. 

Four inbound flights from Bucharest, Rome, Vilnius and Milan had to be diverted on Tuesday, and some shops and businesses closed their doors for the day.

Many services were cancelled on Tuesday morning, including bin collections and postal deliveries.

Fishermen across the country reported having endured a sleepless night as they feared their boats would be damaged or swept away. Strong waves and sea spray battered coastal areas, with Marsascala, Birżebbuġa, Sliema and St Julian's among the worst affected. 

 Meanwhile, food delivery couriers on Tuesday described perilous conditions on Malta’s roads the night before as Storm Harry began battering the island.

Weather forecast

Conditions gradually eased throughout Tuesday, with the wind continuing to veer to the west-southwest and moderate to rather strong.  

A van braves the adverse weather. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli.

One content creator was undeterred by the challenging conditions. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli.

The Met Office said the strongest wind gust recorded over the past few hours reached 50 knots at its Luqa monitoring station, with the Met Office explaining that the Valletta station tended to record higher speeds due to its location and exposure

Cloudy conditions are expected to persist over the coming days with isolated showers, and winds may briefly strengthen to strong or rather strong for a short period on Thursday. Air quality is expected to improve by Friday. 

Damage

By Tuesday morning, reports of fallen trees and damaged properties had started trickling in, with trees reported down in Cospicua, Żebbuġ and Santa Venera's Romeo Romano Garden.

The Civil Protection Department (CPD) had a busy 30 hours, saying in a social media post that officers had cleared 85 fallen trees, 23 pieces of debris and three billboard "incidents".

A fallen tree on Cospicua Road.

A door floats down the road in Marsascala, which saw flooding. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli.

One business saw its outdoor seating area damaged by the strong winds.

A billboard was toppled in Maghtab. Photo: Jonathan Borg.

They also responded to a person locked in a lift, 20 electrical hazards, six HAZMAT spillages, six rubbish fires, three vehicle fire incidents and three medical extractions. 

The Armed Forces (AFM) said they were deployed in operations at sea to assist vessels in difficulties, as well as on the ground to assist in debris and fallen tree removal.

On Tuesday evening, Home Affairs Minster Byron Camilleri thanked the public for heeding storm warnings and staying indoors when possible. He and Prime Minister Robert Abela had joined members of the civil protection department during a call out. 

Overnight, residents took to social media, voicing fears of doors and windows shaking amid the windy conditions. Many reported seeing water tank lids falling into the street, and a fence was reported falling onto an empty car in Marsa. No injuries were reported, however.

Significant quantities of sand and rubbish washed ashore in Marsascala, while a Birkirkara resident reported that a glass from an abandoned house had crashed into a street and hit a resident. A tree in Naxxar was destroyed, bringing down electricity cables, residents reported.

A wall next to Carter's Supermarket in Tarxien collapsed in the strong winds, while Pembroke residents warned on social media of a streetlight falling in a square close to Triq Pietru D'Armenia.

A wall next to Carters Supermarket in Tarxien collapsed from the strong winds. Photo: Matthew Mirabelli.

Disruptions

Traffic was light as many workers worked from home and some parents choose to keep their children at home. Four schools were shut, while MCAST carried out online lessons. 

Public transport provider Tallinja announced that diversions were in place for several routes, with services running "where conditions allow".

MaltaPost suspended deliveries, while black bag collections were also cancelled.

At least one funeral was cancelled due to the adverse weather conditions.

Meanwhile, the Occupational Health and Safety Authority (OHSA) told Times of Malta its 138 helpline was "very busy" on Tuesday morning, with officers carrying out inspections on sites across the country.

The Building and Construction Authority (BCA), writing on Facebook, said its inspectors were working on various construction sites, and had attended third-party properties in St. Paul’s Bay and Qrendi, "where all necessary arrangements have been made to repair the damage once conditions improve".

Such storms 'not uncommon'

The Met Office told Times of Malta that weather systems such as Storm Harry were "not uncommon during this time of year", with a similar storm in February 2019 seeing windspeeds of up to Force 8 and 9, though from the northeast on that occasion.

Spray hits the Sliema Promenade on Monday night. Photo: Chris Sant Fournier.

"More recently, in February 2023, Storm Helios caused significant damage due to strong Easterly to East-Northeasterly winds and prolonged heavy rainfall", the Met Office said.

It noted that the highest windspeeds ever recorded across the country were in 1972, when the Luqa monitoring station recorded gusts of 72 knots - equivalent to around 133 kilometres per hour.