Photo Credit:Associated Press
Both Malaga and the northeastern Catalonia region have been placed on the highest alert for strong rain by National weather office Aemet expecting the rain to last until Friday. Thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes in the Costa del Sol region of southern Spain as extreme rain and flooding drenches the area.
The Malaga area, including the tourist resorts of Marbella, Velez and Estepona, is expected to take the brunt of the extreme weather phenomenon known as a Dana. Parts of the eastern Valencia area have also been placed on the highest alert, weeks after the area was devastated by flash floods that killed more than 220 people.
Several other regions in Spain remain braced for more heavy showers and low temperatures. Up to 180mm of rain could fall in Catalonia in north-eastern Spain in just 12 hours, accompanied by thunderstorms along the coast near Tarragona, forecasters say.
Schools in the entire southern province of Málaga have been closed while many supermarkets have kept shutters down. Footage circulating on social media showed the city's normally busy areas deserted as water flooded the streets. Around 3,000 people living in close proximity to the Guadalhorce River have been told to leave their homes, the Regional Government of Andalusia has said. Regional government's Minister of the Presidency Antonio Sanz said: We have not evacuated entire towns, but rather specific areas linked to the riverbank.
This decision has been communicated to the government of Spain in order to receive collaboration from the state security forces and bodies. The severe weather alert in Málaga has also led to the opening time of the Billie Jean King Cup between Spain and Poland being postponed, the International
Tennis Federation said. The two nations were set to play in Malaga on Wednesday. Spain's meteorological agency Aemet has placed parts of the Andalusia region and the Balearic Islands on orange alert from now until Thursday.
