Officials have warned that Spain is set for strong winds today as heavy rain could also lead to flooding. It comes after three bodies were found as storms battered the country. The Iberian state’s forecaster Aemet has said more inclement weather is expected throughout the day, adding there had already been “significant” rainfall yesterday evening. The Canary Islands government has also advised residents not to undertake unnecessary travel due to the likelihood of harsh winds. Roads have already had to be shut across Spain due to storms in recent days, with trains and flights also cancelled.
Radar footage has shown a swirl of red hazardous weather hitting the country today. Aemet said on X yesterday: “Storm Martinho will bring very strong wind gusts on Thursday. Wind speeds could exceed 100 km/h in the mountains of the northern Iberian Peninsula. It will also bring heavy rain to areas that have already seen significant rainfall: the Central System and western Andalusia. Beware of flooding.”
The director of Aemet in Malaga province, Jesús Riesco, has said that from the second half of March 20, Storm Martinho will make an appearance – another Atlantic storm – but it will be “less strong” in terms of accumulated rainfall than the previous one, according to Sur.
It comes after emergency services in Seville found two bodies – a man and a woman – whose vehicle was swept away by flooding on Tuesday, El País reports.
The man was found underneath the vehicle on Wednesday morning, and the woman’s body was discovered on Tuesday afternoon.
In addition, the body of a 70-year-old cyclist was found on a riverbank after he went missing on Monday in Añora, El País added.
Investigators were reportedly working to determine whether the storm also killed him.
The Daily Mail reports that a British family’s overseas home in Alicante, near Murcia, was hit by a tornado last week, launching debris across the property and causing significant damage.
Local media reported that nine people were rescued in Águilas from vehicles after a storm hit on Tuesday morning.