Formentera Storm: August 2024

The story of a miracle at sea

Formentera, 15 August 2024

Last Wednesday, August 14, the sea around Formentera showed its most terrifying side, with waves driving about forty boats against the rocks near Illetes and Cala Saona, causing significant damage and injuries to several people.

However, the storm’s chaos wasn’t limited to the large vessels on the western side of Formentera; it also affected the Migjorn area, where a true miracle occurred: the safe return of Xicu Torres Costa, known on the island as Xicu des Moliner.

Xicu set out to fish on his llaüt, named Cristina, to retrieve the nets he had out at sea. But the sudden fury of the storm caught him off guard. The fierce winds and enormous waves capsized his boat and eventually sank it. For seven hours, he clung to a piece of wood from his own boat, battling the sea and fighting for his life until he was rescued. When they found him, exhausted and showing signs of hypothermia, it was as if he had been reborn.

Mobilization to Find Him

But Xicu’s story is not just his own; it is also a story of solidarity and brotherhood among the fishermen of Formentera and the entire community of the island. When the alarm was raised about his disappearance, WhatsApp groups started spreading the word, and friends and neighbors in the area didn’t hesitate to head out to sea with their own boats to search for him. With hearts in their throats and hope as their common drive, they scoured every corner of the sea between Es Copinar and the La Mola lighthouse, determined to find him as quickly as possible.

Finally, around 5:30 p.m., Adán Escandell, from one of the boats involved in the search operation organized by the locals, spotted a figure in the water. It was Xicu, alive, raising his arm to make himself visible, clinging to his makeshift raft, the last piece of his llaüt Cristina, which now rests on the seabed in front of the cliffs of La Mola.

Circumstances of the Shipwreck

Once he was safe, Xicu described how the storm had capsized his llaüt within minutes and how he managed to stay afloat briefly on the keel of his boat until it eventually sank completely. He then clung to one of the wooden covers from his boat as a makeshift lifeboat until his neighbors and friends found him seven hours later.

He was transferred, exhausted and showing mild signs of hypothermia, to the Es Copinar beach area for disembarkation and then to Formentera Hospital, where he was kept under observation but was out of danger.

Formentera Storm: A Community of Solidarity

Today, August 15, we’ve already received a photo of Xicu via WhatsApp, smiling as he always does, thanking everyone who helped him through his worst ordeal at sea and those who were concerned about his situation.

Thanks to the determination of the fishermen, the people of Formentera, and the cooperation of all the security forces involved, this story had a happy ending, once again demonstrating the strength of the Formentera community in times of adversity.

Now, I’m eagerly anticipating the celebration being organized to give Xicu des Moliner a massive collective hug. Meanwhile, Xicu, a great storyteller of past events, will recount in detail what happened on that tragic day with a happy ending this coming winter.