Charlie Smith
THE family of Mallorca flood victim Joana Lliteras Planas have penned a heartrending letter thanking the emergency services, while their little boy Arthur is still missing.
Courageous mother, Joana, 40, died after plucking her daughter Ursula from the torrent of water rapidly flooding their vehicle.
The floods have claimed 12 lives already and Joana’s son Arthur is feared to be the 13th fatality, as rescue teams continue their search for the five-year-old six days after he first disappeared.
After his backpack and jacket were found last week the search and rescue teams have widened their operations to include the ocean and at the weekend there were over 300 people searching for Arthur.
It is these men and women that the family from Manacor praise in their open letter, expressing their ‘endless thanks’ for the support offered to them in what they call ‘the toughest of trials of life.’
The family also pay homage to the hundreds of civilian volunteers who been instrumental in getting Mallorca back on its feet following this national tragedy.
The family’s full letter is below:
“Despite the hard times we are going through, struggling with all our strength to overcome the toughest of trials of life; we can not fail to thank all those who continue to look for Arthur untiring.
“Our little one is still missing.
“From the first moment, the Civil Guard has not been missing from our side.
“Endless thanks for the day and night work of the military of the UME, the firefighters of the different bodies of the island, the IBANAT, members of civil protection, the different canine units … We know that each and every one of them have worked tirelessly.
“As well as thanking the professionalism of the National Police and the local police of several municipalities, thanks to the Direcció General de Emergències, to Creu Roja, to SAMU to the psychologists of 112 and especially to the GEAS of the Civil Guard who continue the search by untiring sea.
“Finally, we can not forget all those friends and anonymous citizens who, without knowing each other, have organized themselves and have sought Arthur for the rest of our family.
“To all, absolutely to all, thank you very much, in our hearts we are left with all this love that you are showing us.”
As well as Joana, a British couple Antony Green, 77, and his wife Delia, 75, were among the 12 victims of Tuesday’s natural disaster.
The worst floods in Mallorca’s living memory inflicted upwards of €30 million in damage and left 200 people homeless, while at least 324 vehicles were damaged.
From Thursday to Saturday 2,823 tons of shrapnel were collected from around the Sant Llorenc and Arta areas, while 265 animals were reported dead, with another 60 being saved.
The floods raged from Tuesday night through to Wednesday, as the north and north east of Mallorca bore the brunt of some of the worst weather the island has seen in a century.
