Gibraltar airport shut over damage from heavy winds

Madrid: The airport in Gibraltar closed Saturday after heavy winds damaged equipment, the British overseas territory´s government announced, as strong gusts and downpours hit southern Spain.

Gibraltar´s government said flights to the Rock had been diverted to Malaga and passengers would then be taken by bus to the territory. The government statement did not specify what equipment had been damaged in the airport. The news comes with a mass of warm air from the Atlantic clashing this week in Spain with the so-called “Beast from the East,” a cold weather front that blew in from Siberia, causing heavy snowfall in the north.

In the south, while the rain was welcome in a drought-prone area, the heavy wind caused damage and even one death.