Flash floods kill centenarian and trigger 90 rescues in Madrigueras

Storm and residential flooding

A severe storm struck the municipality of Madrigueras in the province of Albacete on Friday evening, starting around 18:00 and unloading 142 liters of water per square meter. The torrential downpour turned streets into torrents and inundated ground floors, basements, garages, and commercial premises across the town. Water levels reached approximately half a meter throughout public streets and rose above one meter inside several homes. A 102-year-old woman died inside her residence after floodwaters engulfed the building. Strong currents swept away dozens of parked vehicles, piling them up along streets and obstructing residential access routes.

It has rained heavily, the whole town is flooded.

Emergency mobilization and regional alerts

Emergency services performed around 90 rescues across the municipality during Friday afternoon and the early hours of the night, assisting residents who were trapped in flooded properties and facilities. The Castilla-La Mancha emergency coordination service received 108 incident calls from Madrigueras, where frightened residents sought guidance as water levels escalated rapidly. Across the autonomous community, operators logged 276 total incidents up to late Friday afternoon, with Albacete province accounting for 170 of the registered cases. Regional authorities sent an ES-Alert message to mobile devices across the La Manchuela districts of Albacete and Cuenca at 19:36, warning of intense rainfall and instructing the public to avoid all unnecessary journeys. The regional government raised its emergency weather plan (Meteocam) from level 0 to Operational Situation 1 for Albacete province at 22:15.

Transport disruption and regional storm impact

Floodwaters disrupted road access into Madrigueras, prompting the Guardia Civil to close sections of the CM-316, the CM-3222a, and the AB-105. Maintenance crews managed to clear and reopen the CM-316 and AB-105 late Friday night, while the CM-3222 remained shut at kilometer 5 into early Saturday. The weather system also struck other areas in Castilla-La Mancha, including Manzanares in Ciudad Real province before 15:00 on Friday. That localized storm dropped more than 35 liters per square meter in minutes, peaking at an intensity rate of 107 liters per square meter per hour. The Manzanares flooding damaged vehicles, basements, and signage at the Manzanares Arena venue, though local authorities confirmed no injuries occurred there.

Cleanup efforts and ongoing operations

The emergency response in Madrigueras mobilized fire crews from stations in La Roda and Casas Ibáñez, alongside reinforcements from Hellín and Almansa. Firefighters, the Provincial Fire Extinction Service (Sepei), Civil Protection teams, and the Red Cross coordinated aid and secured waterlogged properties. The Guardia Civil Citizen Security Unit (Usecic) remained stationed in the municipality throughout Friday night to secure damaged areas and support vehicle removal. Teams from the regional environmental enterprise Geacam were scheduled to arrive on Saturday morning to assist with street clearing and infrastructure recovery. Government Delegate José Pablo Sabrido scheduled a visit to Madrigueras on Saturday morning to inspect the damage and review ongoing recovery efforts.