“Red alert” for intense rains in Spain: more than 3,000 people evacuated in Andalusia

Part of southern Spain and several regions of Portugal are in the grip of intense rains on Wednesday due to depression Leonardo, which has already led to the evacuation of 3,000 people in Andalusia, the paralysis of rail traffic and the closure of many schools.

In Spain, the southern region of Andalusia is affected by rainfall described as “extraordinary” by Aemet, the national meteorological agency, which mentions the risk of “possible landslides, floods and floods”.

“The soils are very saturated, the rivers are already carrying a lot of water and can experience very, very significant flooding,” its spokesperson, Rubén del Campo, warned on X.

Cádiz and Ronda affected

A “red alert”, the highest level, has been issued in the areas of Cádiz and Ronda and several surrounding massifs.

“It was an extremely intense night,” Carlos García, mayor of the small town of Grazalema, told public television TVE, who said that since midnight, “180 liters” of water per square meter had fallen in the region.

At this point, more than 3,000 people have already been evacuated as a precaution, according to emergency services, and most schools – except those in Almeria province, at the eastern edge of the region – have been closed by local authorities, with travel strongly discouraged.

These measures are “very effective”, assured the regional emergency services on Rail traffic in the Andalusian region is also almost entirely suspended, announced Renfe, the national operator.

Reinforcement help

As early as Tuesday, on the eve of this new rainy episode, the president of the region, Juan Manuel Moreno, had called on the population to exercise “extreme caution”, shortly before the announcement of the deployment of soldiers from the special army relief unit (UME) as reinforcements.

Spain remains devastated by the catastrophic floods of October 2024, which left more than 230 dead, mainly in the Valencia region. One person also died in Andalusia.

The Iberian Peninsula is on the front line of climate change, experiencing increasingly long heat waves and increasingly frequent episodes of heavy rain for several years.

Portugal also affected

Neighboring Portugal, hit in recent weeks by several successive storms, is also facing depression Leonardo, the effects of which should be felt until Saturday, according to the National Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA).

The organization said it expected “persistent, and sometimes heavy, precipitation”, but also “snowfall, strong winds and strong maritime disturbances”.

At 8 a.m. on Wednesday, emergency services had been called to intervene in nearly 200 incidents, mainly urban flooding, falling trees or landslides, which however did not cause any casualties or significant damage, according to a report provided by civil protection.

The most affected regions were Lisbon and its suburbs, as well as the Algarve (south). The entire coastline is placed on orange alert, in addition to certain northern and central regions.

According to the latest bulletin from the Portuguese meteorological agency on Tuesday evening, the period of highest intensity of rain and wind is expected during the night from Wednesday to Thursday. And, after a relative lull expected on Friday, conditions are expected to deteriorate again on Saturday.

Portugal, which is organizing the second round of the presidential election on Sunday, is barely recovering from the Kristin Depression, which last week left five people dead and around 400 injured.