A storm across eastern and southern Spain

A Mediterranean storm that Spain's meteorological agency AEMET named DANA Adam brought heavy rain and flooding to several regions on Sunday, 18 October. AEMET placed six autonomous communities under yellow, orange or red warnings: Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, Valencia, Murcia, Andalusia and Extremadura. The most serious situation is in the Valencia region, which has been under a red alert since the morning of 18 October, with rainfall forecast to reach up to 300 litres per square metre within 24 hours. Emergency services in Valencia, Catalonia, Andalusia and the Balearic Islands reported hundreds of incidents, including flooded homes and roads, fallen trees and material damage. Phone alerts asked residents of Valencia, Ibiza and Formentera to avoid unnecessary travel and to take care. Notícias ao Minuto notes that the 2024 floods in the Valencia region were the deadliest in Spain in a generation.

One woman dead near Barcelona

A 35-year-old woman was swept away by a stream in Cabrera de Mar, a town about 25 to 30 kilometres from Barcelona, on Saturday, 17 October. Sources give the distance differently, from 25 to 27 kilometres, with one report saying about 30. Super Express reports that she was walking back to the family car after a basketball game and tried to cross the swollen stream at about 19:30, while RTE reports she was crossing with her children. The mayor of Cabrera de Mar told reporters that people at the basketball match had been asked not to leave the municipal facility because of the torrential rain. The Civil Protection Service said rescuers found her body in the sea, while Super Express puts the recovery at about 11:00 on Sunday, 18 October, near the port of Premià de Mar. Authorities cited by RTE said her death brings the toll from heavy rain and flooding over the past 15 days to five.

Ibiza, Almería and Málaga

On Ibiza, the main road to the airport was closed on 18 October, and footage shows water pouring from the terminal ceiling. Aena, the airport operator, reported at least five flights cancelled and 16 diverted, with others cancelled. The army sent an emergency unit from the mainland to help manage the situation on Ibiza and Mallorca. In Almería province, emergency services reported 37 rescue operations since Saturday, 17 October, with people isolated by the water. Near Málaga, firefighters rescued ten people on Saturday night, 17 October, after rising water trapped them in a tunnel under a seafront promenade. RTE reports that in Almería the rain destroyed a commercial greenhouse and washed cars off a road. Super Express reports hundreds of people without power on Ibiza and Formentera and more than 100 emergency calls, mostly from drivers trapped in flooded cars.

Forecast and wider context

Dangerous weather is expected to persist until Monday, 19 October, according to Super Express. Authorities warn of further flooding and urge people to stay indoors unless they must go out. RTE reports that scientists link more frequent flooding across Europe to a warmer atmosphere that holds more moisture, and that Spain has been particularly hard hit. In August, a flood and landslide near Pontevedra in north-western Spain killed two elderly women, RTE notes. The current floods followed weeks of record high temperatures that led to a series of wildfires.