A total of 48 lives were lost with 8 more people still reported as missing. Sixty families were left without a home to return to and the majority of Funchal businesses remain closed at the time of writing. The total financial estimation is expected on Friday but there have already been reports that it will take a minimum of 2 years for Madeira to be rebuilt to its former glory. Speculations see the  impact on Madeira’s tourism be around 5 years but with the world’s  fluctuating economy it’s really anybodies guess. Three days of national mourning were held for the victims of the this tragedy.

The below photos show a fraction of the aftermath of the storm in Funchal and a couple photos of the damage to a close friend’s property.

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5. Havana Club – São Vicente

Havana could be your first stop this Halloween, it’s a good club and will have DJ Fabini doing his thing. Also Fridays from the 31st of Oct to the 10th of November are Ladies Nights, ladies get a free drink or two.

4. El Mexicano Restaurante – Funchal

The Mexicano will be in on the Halloween action as well but to what extent remains to be seen. If you’re looking for a fairly laid back atmosphere the Mexicano may be for you. The restaurant has Mexican-ish decorations and color scheme going on and very friendly staff. The food and margaritas are good too.

3. GUGAS – Ajuda

Gugas is another laid back snack bar/restaurante with an outdoor patio. Halloween night they will have beers from 0.30ȼ – €1. Gugas is located in front of Madeira Magic.

2. Copacabana, Casino da Madeira – Funchal

The Copacabana is one of my favorite clubs in Funchal. It is a club located at the bottom of the Casino and has a nice dark underground feel to it with lots of room for dancing. This Halloween they pull out all the stops with live music from Banadaz’inha with Cristina Barbosa as lead vocals. There will be lots of photographers snapping up pics for the casino’s album and as always- good music to get your groove on.

1. Vespas/Jam – Funchal

If for some reason you can only make it 2 one of the places on this list, Vespas better be it. Antennae 3 will be “IN DA CLUB” to doing their Halloween episode for the station that will feature 30 zombies. Expect the usual awesome beats spun by DJ OXY and some remixed classics like MJ’s “Thriller” and hopefully DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince’s  “Nightmare on My Street”.

One such storm came occured on the 6th of April. This was the strongest storm Madeira had seen in 8 years and was responsible for over 10 million euros of reported damage. The destruction was wide-spread across the island and consisted of heavy flooding, landslides, wind, and even fires caused by broken gas lines during landslides. Madeira’s main export (bananas) suffered a loss as well due to wind damaging 25% of all crops on the island.

However as with all dark clouds, there is a silver lining to this story as well. Madeira recovers quickly from disaster and rebuilt and renew areas can now be found across the island especially in Funchal and surrounding areas where tourism is high.

When planning your trip to Madeira be sure to plan accordingly with the weather. The months of March and April are usually the rainiest of the year with May through October having the nicest weather.