Heavy rains in southern Spain trigger flooding and evacuations

Unrelenting rains in southern Spain have triggered flash floods and evacuation orders in the Andalusian provinces of Málaga and Córdoba, where 19 waterways are at red level for risk of flooding. One body has been found and at least three more people are reported missing.

The risk posed by by the rising waters has also led authorities to close off roads, cancel classes and suspend railroad service on three lines. In the nearby region of Murcia, in southeastern Spain, several passengers were injured after a bus overturned on the A-7 highway, while nine people were trapped inside two cars in Águilas, a popular coastal destination.

Parts of Spain have been experiencing persistently rainy weather since early March. There were isolated episodes of flooding earlier this month in the Valencia region, where residents are still recovering from the historic flash floods of late October, which also affected parts of Andalusia.

The State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) on Tuesday maintained an orange warning for rain in Costa del Sol, Málaga and Axarquía. Wednesday is expected to provide some respite from a storm named Laurence, although the weather service is warning that a new storm, Martinho, could hit the peninsula on Thursday.

In Málaga, the Andalusian regional government ordered the evacuation of close to 400 homes in Campanillas, east of the regional capital, due to forecasts that heavy rains could cause the river to burst its banks. Various parts of the province registered rainfall of 50 mm to 70 mm in the last 12 hours.

In Córdoba, local authorities have evacuated residents from five plots of land near the Guadalquivir River, which is at the red level, and declared a Level 1 emergency in the city’s flood-prone areas. In the province of Granada, the coast experienced a night of heavy rain, which continued until almost 9 a.m. Reservoirs filled to capacity have been opened up to let out the excess water in places like Casasola. And Guadalhorce River reached its highest average level since record-keeping began.

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