Linea Directa 200 LEFT COL CAR INSURANCE

PROPERTY SEARCH

Date Published: 07/03/2022

ARCHIVED - Record rainfall: Heavy downpour causes flash flooding in Alicante

ARCHIVED ARTICLE

Firefighters rescued the occupants of a car trapped in flood waters in Elche in the Baix Vinalopó area of Alicante province

<span style='color:#780948'>ARCHIVED</span> - Record rainfall: Heavy downpour causes flash flooding in Alicante

Heavy rain pummeled parts of Alicante province at the weekend causing roads to flood, making them impassable to vehicles and causing major disruptions.

Alicante Provincial Firefighters responded to more than 20 emergency calls on Friday morning, March 4, the majority of which were in Elche where they rescued a group of people trapped inside a car in rising waters on the outskirts of the Altabix neighbourhood.

According to the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet), which issued orange and yellow alerts for heavy rain, particularly in coastal areas from Friday through to Sunday, Alicante-Elche airport registered the highest level of rainfall since 1967.

Algunos vecinos que viven al lado del aeropuerto pasaron en vela parte de la pasada noche debido a las fuertes lluvias y a las inundaciones locales que se produjeron en esa zona.

📹 Ingeborg Heije.@informacion_es @AEMET_SINOBAS @GeografiaUa @AEMET_CValencia pic.twitter.com/0EiqMxNd2Q
— Climatología UA (@climatologia_ua) March 4, 2022

By 8am on Friday morning, 131.2 l/m2 of rainfall had accumulated at Alicante-Elche Airport, 101 l/m2 of which fell in just one hour.

Elsewhere, 54.8 l/m2 were recorded in Elche, 54.6 in Pinoso, 44.6 in Novelda, 35.4 in Rojales, 19.8 at Valencia airport, 18.4 in Alicante city and 17.7 in the Valencian capital.

Aemet sources confirmed that "this is the highest amount of rainfall accumulated in one hour at Alicante-Elche airport in 55 years", which "is really extraordinary as it occurred in the cold season, at the beginning of March".

And the torrential conditions kept firefighters on their toes with a succession of calls relating to trapped vehicles, burst water pipes and leaks in Elche, Petrer and Sant Joan d'Alacant.

The Climatology Laboratory of the University of Alicante (UA) has reported on Twitter that, "unfortunately, the intensity of the rain caused some incidents in the municipality of Elche, where roads have flooded and damage has been caused to homes".

Thankfully, no injuries have been reported and no flights were suspended due to the storm.

Aemet has maintained an orange alert for significant risk of rain in the Vinalopó area of the province and the yellow level in coastal areas of Alicante and southern Valencia.

Image: Twitter

Linea Directa Bottom Article A-L CAR INSURANCE

staff.inc.ali

Sign up for the Spanish News Today Editors Roundup Weekly Bulletin and get an email with all the week’s news straight to your inbox

Special offer: Subscribe now for 25% off (36.95 euros for 48 Bulletins)