Thousands of residents in Spain’s Costa del Sol have been evacuated over fears a new weather front that could bring flooding again to the region.
Two weeks after the worst floods in the country’s modern history killed more than 200 people, authorities issued a rare red alert for heavy rainfall in Malaga, prompting the evacuation of around 3,000 people living along the Guadalhorce River.
Spain’s meteorological agency Aemet issued orange and red alerts for parts of Andalusia, Catalonia, and Valencia, warning that prolonged and intense rainfall could push rivers to dangerous levels, threatening lives and buildings.
The Malaga province, including the tourist resort of Marbella on the Costa del Sol, is expected to take the brunt of the weather but Catalonia in northeastern Spain has also been placed under red alert until Wednesday evening.
Schools have been closed across high-risk areas as residents brace for what officials warn could be days of relentless rain and rising waters.
Antonio Sanz, a minister from the regional government, 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 “Dana” weather phenomenon is not expected to be as dramatic as the red alert on 29 October but has the potential to bring continuous rain that could quickly inundate vulnerable areas such as the eastern and southern Mediterranean, El Mundo reported.
Instead of moving swiftly through a region, the Dana can stall and result in prolonged, intense rainfall over several days.
The impact of the expected downpour on Wednesday could be severe due to the large amounts of mud already on the ground and the condition of the sewage system, Rosa Tauris, a spokesperson for Valencia’s emergency committee, told reporters.
The city council in Paiporta, Valencia, advised flood relief volunteers to avoid any areas under orange alerts today, El Mundo reported. The council also urged those in affected areas “not carrying out priority tasks to take shelter”.
Following criticism of the government’s inadequate response to last month’s flooding, authorities could face intense scrutiny as they manage the latest round of severe weather.
During a visit to Valencia in the immediate aftermath of the floods, King Felipe VI, prime minister Pedro Sánchez, and regional president Carlos Mazón faced public outrage in the town of Paiporta, where residents threw mud and hurled insults, frustrated by what they saw as insufficient state support.
Growing anger over the government’s handling of the crisis sparked a massive protest on Saturday night, with 130,000 people taking to the streets in Valencia to demand Mr Mazón’s resignation.
At the opening of COP29 in Baku on Monday, United Nations climate summit president Mukhtar Babayev pointed to the recent catastrophes in Valencia and other regions as proof that climate collapse is already unfolding.
