A 5ft-high wave has wreaked devastation at popular holiday hotspots in Majorca and Menorca, flooding coastal roads, bars and terraces.
The “mini-tsunami” crashed into Ciutadella on the west coast of Menorca on Monday morning, leaving local beaches flooded, reports the Daily Mirror.
The meteotsunami - a tsunami-like wave of meteorological origin - also hit beaches in Majorca less than 40 miles from the Love Island villa.
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There have been no reports of injuries. The incident occurred in the early hours, when the streets and beaches were still largely empty.
The strong current “broke the ropes of a historic sailing boat used by the Majorca Island Council which had to be rescued by sailors and brought back to port as it drifted out to sea”, the Daily Mail reports.
Meteotsunamis, known as rissaga in Catalan Spanish, are caused by rapid changes in barometric pressure, resulting in the displacement of a body of water.
Witness Marti Fuster, who owns a fishing boat Majorca’s Port d’Alcudia, said “he had never seen a rissaga like that in the bay of Alcudia”.
Meteotsunamis have also been recorded in the UK. The first ever officially identified British meteotsunami hit the Cornish coastline in June 2011, according to The Sun.
“British researchers first became aware of the meteotsunami after people walking across St Michael’s Mount causeway suddenly found themselves standing in water,” the newspaper says.
