British pensioner killed as tornado rips through Albufeira holiday park during Storm Claudia

British woman killed after extreme wind event hits Albufeira campsite

An 85-year-old British woman has died after Storm Claudia swept through a holiday campsite in Albufeira, Portugal, authorities confirmed. She was initially reported missing and later found dead amid the wreckage; her name has not been released.

Local media reported that a tornado tore through the campsite. SIC, a Portuguese broadcaster, described the occurrence as “an extreme wind phenomenon.” Vítor Vaz Pinto, regional commander of Algarve emergency services, said the storm left 28 people injured in the area, two of them seriously.

The injured included Portuguese, Spanish and British nationals. Six casualties were treated at the campsite and 23 at a nearby hotel. Carlos Raposa of the National Institute of Medical Emergency (INEM) said six of the injured were children aged between two months and seven years, all with minor injuries; injured adults ranged from 24 to 70 years old.

President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa expressed “solidarity with the family of the victim who died as a result of Storm Claudia’s passage this morning in Albufeira.”

Across Portugal, the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority logged about 3,363 incidents, mainly reports of flooding. Separately, two people died on Thursday in Seixal, in the Lisbon metro area, after their home was flooded by heavy rain. The storm system is expected to continue at least until early Monday.

The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office has been approached for comment.