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Date Published: 23/03/2022
ARCHIVED - Torrential March deluge puts 11 Spanish provinces on alert
Spain has already experienced 44% more rain than is usual for the entire month of March
The downpours experienced across Spain in recent days have resulted in 44% more rain falling by March 23 than is normally seen in the entire month, according to the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet). In addition, the Castellón de la Plana observatory collected an astonishing 116.6 litres of water per square metre on Monday, making it the third wettest day in the last 111 years, only behind 2020 and 2015.
The torrential rain, snowfall, strong gusts and choppy waves have resulted in eleven communities being put on alert this Wednesday, with the brunt of the weather expected to hit Malaga, which is under an orange warning.
Almeria, Murcia, Cadiz, Sevilla and Alicante have been warned to expect 20 metres of water per hour, and several communities are also expecting strong winds and adverse sea conditions.
“We started the astronomical spring with an episode of rains in the Mediterranean,” Aemet spokesperson Ruben del Campo explained, which usually results in more persistent precipitation rather than the intense storms most of Spain has been experiencing of late – weather episodes more akin to autumn than mid-March.
In fact, in the first 20 days of this month, the majority of Spain experienced more than double or even triple what is usual, according to de Campo, which has served to replenish many of the reservoirs and saved many crops that were doomed to fail as a result of the drought.
“There is still a long way to go to reverse the situation of low rainfall that took place during the autumn and winter,” de Campo has concluded, but for now the March rains are helping to “partially alleviate” the situation.
You might also like: Yellow weather alerts for rainfall in Mazarrón and much of Murcia
Image: Aemet
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