DEVASTATION: €30 million repair work after fatal floods wreaked havoc across Mallorca

REPAIR work after the floods which devastated Llevant and surrounding areas of Mallorca, and claimed the lives of 13 people, have so far cost the Balearic Government €30.5 million.

Six months on from the violent storms and 2,200 tonnes of waste has been removed, 173 kilometres of riverbeds have been attended to nearly 30 kilometres of walls have been repaired.

The government has also dealt with more than 1,000 commercial and private cases, and loans have been given to local councils to help with the clean-up operation.

Subsidies and tax cuts or breaks have been agreed to those affected by the floods, which saw eight inches of rain fall in just four hours on October 9.

Determined to learn lessons from the disaster, a team of researchers from the University of the Balearic Islands have been investigating the cause of the fatal flooding, keen to dispel rumours there was a great wave of water or that the torrent had been poorly maintained.

According to the team, the torrent, which was expanded in 1989, was clean though it would have been overwhelmed by waste carried by the volume of water.

They are also of the opinion it is unable to cope with more than 500 cubic metres which can pass through it.

Other issues raised by the researchers is the presence of the oversized bridges which act like a barrier to the flow of water, and the fact there are buildings too close to the torrent.