Spain On Red Alert: Storm Claudia Batters The Country With Extreme Rain, Flooding Risks And Gale-force Winds

Spain woke to a vulnerable cocktail of upwind this Friday, November 14, arsenic Storm Claudia swept crossed nan country, unleashing torrential rain, powerful gusts and quickly rising rivers – pinch nan nationalist upwind agency AEMET issuing overnight red alerts for utmost rainfall successful parts of Ávila and Cáceres.

AEMET reddish warnings overnight arsenic rainfall turns “extraordinary”

Through nan mini hours, AEMET activated reddish alerts – its highest informing level – for zones of bluish Cáceres, nan Central System and nan southbound of Ávila, informing of nan imaginable to transcend 120 litres per quadrate metre successful 12 hours. Authorities urged group to debar riverbanks and flood-prone areas and to travel instructions from Protección Civil.
Those reddish alerts remained successful unit until 06:00 connected Friday, November 14, but nan agency cautioned that terrible upwind continues, pinch caller warnings cascading crossed overmuch of nan peninsula arsenic nan strategy marches east.

Claudia’s signature truthful far: intense, persistent downpours nether leaden skies, embedded thunderstorms successful places, and accelerated run-off sending smaller rivers and streams to nan brim. Emergency services person been fielding calls for waterlogged roads, fallen branches and insignificant landslides, peculiarly crossed nan northbound and interior.

Who is successful nan firing statement today? Heavy rain, beardown winds, abrupt somesthesia drops

AEMET’s guidance for Friday points to wide dense rainfall successful respective hotspots: Andalusia, nan Pyrenees, Galicia, nan Cantabrian scope and astir nan Alborán.
Wind will besides play a starring role. Expect beardown southerlies successful nan mountains of Mallorca, crossed cardinal Spain and nan bluish half of nan peninsula, arsenic good arsenic on nan eastbound Cantabrian seashore and Atlantic shorelines. Exposed headlands could spot terrible gusts, making high-level routes and coastal recreation tricky.

It won’t consciousness for illustration yesterday either. Maximum temperatures are group to tumble, particularly successful nan Pyrenees, eastbound Andalusia and parts of Castilla-La Mancha, wherever nan time will move noticeably cooler nether nan rainfall and wind.

What does that mean connected nan ground? Road spray, abrupt aquaplaning and mediocre visibility connected nan main corridors; localised flooding successful nan accustomed municipality debased spots; and, successful nan hills, crosswinds that tin buffet high-sided vehicles. If you’re readying to travel, cheque your route, let other clip and support a adjacent oculus connected AEMET’s unrecorded updates.

Practical advice: support distant from waterways and travel charismatic guidance

With rivers already moving high, Protección Civil’s connection is straightforward:

• Stay clear of riverbeds, streams and low-lying crossings. A short burst of aggravated rainfall tin move a trickle into a flood successful minutes.
• Don’t effort to thrust done opinionated water. Even shallow flows tin hide potholes aliases expanse a car disconnected course.
• Secure outdoor items (terrace furniture, works pots, scaffolding) and debar wood tracks aliases exposed ridgelines while nan strongest gusts pass.
• Watch for falling branches successful parks and on tree-lined avenues, peculiarly nether those southerly gusts.
• If you unrecorded successful a flood-sensitive area, move valuables disconnected nan level and support your telephone charged successful lawsuit warnings escalate.

AEMET will update aliases escalate alerts arsenic caller rainfall bands rotation successful astir Claudia’s core. While nan astir aggravated burst triggered nan overnight reddish warnings, nan broader large wind remains active, and nan operation of saturated soils, much rainfall and gusty winds intends nan flood consequence persists into nan day.

Storm Claudia has put ample swathes of Spain connected notice. With utmost rainfall already recorded and further dense showers and beardown winds successful nan forecast, coming is 1 to scheme carefully, enactment informed and support clear of flood zones. We’ll bring updates arsenic conditions evolve.

Stay tuned pinch Euro Weekly News for nan latest news from Spain