Golfball-sized hailstones kill at least 100 pigeons in Spain as tourists warned ‘stay indoors’ amid ferocious storm

HUGE hailstones the size of golf balls have killed at least 100 pigeons in Spain – as tourists are warned to stay indoors amid a ferocious storm. A torrential downpour tore through Tarragona on Monday, causing buildings to collapse, travel chaos, and flooding. Dozens of dead pigeons were seen lying on the floor following the storm Credit: X One local appeared to get swept away by a stream of rainwater Credit: X Terrifying footage from the east coast city showed one man being swept down a street as it was turned into a river by the deluge. Another clip showed part of a shopping centre roof coming down during the hailstorm. Sign up for The Sun newsletter Thank you! The extreme weather also killed around 100 pigeons in Tarragona Port as they were battered by hail. Shocking videos showed their lifeless bodies lying on the road following the brutal downpour. The brutal storm killed at least 100 pigeons, reports say Credit: X A mall roof collapsed during the extreme weather Credit: X One local said: “The birds didn’t have time to protect themselves and they were victims of the violent storm that hit the area with intense rain, strong gusts of wind and lightning.” More than 1,000 emergency calls were made as the weather wreaked havoc across the coast and left many in Tarragona without electricity. Firefighters were scrambled to deal with flooded basements and fallen trees – some of which had crushed cars. Roads were also shut off by some of the destroyed trees. Most read in The Sun Shock footage showed hail pelting down in Tarragona Credit: X Streets were turned into rivers during the chaos Credit: X Three people are understood to have been injured and rushed to hospital due to the storm. The weather also disrupted a major sporting event. The third stage of Spain’s annual Vuelta a Espana, one of cycling’s three “Grand Tours” alongside the Tour de France and the Giro d’Italia, was cancelled after athletes were caught out by the hailstorm. Riders had to stop and take shelter as they headed towards the Font-Romeu ski resort in the French Pyrenees where they were due to finish. Wild weather battered the region as hailstones came raining down Credit: X Dead pigeons littered the streets following the storm Credit: X Event organisers confirmed afterwards the cancellation was for the “safety of riders”. The extraordinary storm also came amid a series of other freak weather events. At least 11 people were injured in the early hours of Saturday morning during freak weather in and around the town of Roda de Bera a half-hour drive north of the city of Tarragona. They included an 18-year-old woman left fighting for her life after a seafront wall collapsed on top of her and another two people. On Monday, the Balearic Islands were hit by a series of mini-tsunamis. In San Antonio, Ibiza, a concert had to be suspended as the s’Arenal beach was left flooded. In Majorca the mini-tsunamis, known locally as rissagues, affected the ports of Alcudia, Andratx and Soller as well as Port Adriano near Magaluf. The extreme weather phenomena known in the Balearics as rissagues are caused by sudden atmospheric pressure changes rather than earthquakes or seismic activities and are not new to the islands. Comment now