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An “extraordinary danger”: part of the Spanish coast placed on red alert due to torrential rains

The southern coast of Alicante and part of the Murcia region are on red alert for rain this Friday, October 10. The Valencia region, devastated by floods almost a year ago, is also on alert.

Red watch. The Spanish National Meteorological Agency (Aemet) has placed the Alicante coast and part of the Murcia region, in the southeast of the country, on maximum alert for torrential rains starting at 10 a.m. this Friday, October 10. Aemet evokes an “extraordinary danger.”

“Flooding and flash flooding may occur. Follow civil protection recommendations,” he warned.

Several regions, such as Valencia, hit by deadly floods last year, have also been placed on orange alert.

Heavy rain this Thursday

In Alicante, the meteorological services have warned of rainfall that could generate at least 180 liters per square meter in twelve hours, reports El País.

These rains are linked to the cold drop (DANA in Spain) Alicia. A common climatic phenomenon in the Mediterranean at this time of year, the DANA (acronym for isolated depression at high levels) can cause torrential rain. Already this Thursday it caused floods with records that exceeded, for example, 120 liters per square meter in the town of Relleu.

Municipal classes and activities have been suspended in many municipalities in the region. Emergency services have already carried out several dozen interventions, in particular due to obstacles on the roads and requests for pumping.

All flights that were due to land in Alicante since early afternoon are suffering significant delays or have been diverted to other airports, according to airport director Aena. “Due to the bad weather conditions,” the railway company Renfe even offered it free of charge to all travelers who wanted to postpone or cancel their tickets for trips planned in the Valencian Community this Thursday and Friday.

Civil Protection of the Generalitat Valenciana sent a notice to the neighbors’ cell phones on red alert shortly before 3:00 p.m.

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Strengthened by climate change

In October 2024, the authorities were severely criticized. The deadly floods, mainly in the region of Valencia, have aroused the anger of the victims, who have criticized the management of the alert and relief, in a context of controversy between the left-wing central government and the right-wing regional authorities over the powers of each in these areas. Since then, residents have demonstrated periodically to criticize the regional executive for not having warned them sufficiently in advance of the danger of torrential rains.

A few weeks ago, heavy rain hit the region and the Balearic archipelago again, causing schools and universities to close, disrupting rail and road transport and causing localized flooding.

The effects of these DANA are reinforced by the urbanization of the affected areas but especially by climate change. According to World Weather Attribution experts, the October 2024 cold snap was about 12% more intense and twice as likely due to global warming.

The more global temperatures rise, the more intense precipitation can be. In fact, when the atmosphere warms 1°C, it can actually contain 7% more water vapor, leading to an intensification of extreme precipitation.

In addition, it is also the seas and oceans that are warming. Spain, which borders the Mediterranean Sea, is particularly vulnerable. The presence of warm air near the surface, fueled by excess moisture from the still warm Mediterranean Sea, makes the conflict with a cold air mass even greater, providing fuel for heavy downpours and even storms.

The question of time and climate, your BFMTV podcast

Why are we no longer used to the cold? How will climate change change our daily lives? Are we going to run out of water? What is an anticyclone? Every day, our journalists answer your questions about the weather and what the weather will be like. The Weather-Climate Question is a daily podcast from BFMTV, available on the site and app and on all listening platforms: Apple Podcast, Amazon Music, Deezer or Spotify.

Author: Salome Robles
Source: BFM TV

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