Holidaymakers heading to Spain have been warned of potential travel disruption after parts of the country were hit with flash floods.
A number of popular holiday destinations have been hit by heavy rainfall in recent days, leading Spain's national weather agency AEMET to issue yellow weather warnings across several areas. The south-east region of Murcia has seen the most severe impact from the extreme weather, where the rainfall has seen some streets turn into rivers with cars submerged and buildings flooded.
Among the regions placed under the yellow weather warning on Tuesday, May 30 for rainfall and storms were Andalusia, Catalonia and the Balearic Islands, encompassing tourist hotspots like Malaga, Barcelona, Palma and Ibiza. The Community of Madrid, which includes the country's capital, and the Murcia region were given a more severe amber risk on Tuesday, The Mirror reports.
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The flooding has been caused by a weather phenomenon known as the DANA, translating to Isolated High-Level Depression, which commonly occurs in the Mediterranean region. Spanish publication Murcia Today described it as "one of the most dreaded weather phenomena", bringing with it unstable conditions often in the form of heavy rain and thunderstorms.
Some locations in the Valencia region saw more rainfall during a few days last week than they did in the previous six months, according to meteorologists. The town of Ontinyent recorded the highest rainfall in one day for more than 100 years, with a total of 130 litres per square metre falling in 24 hours.
The capital of Madrid was also hit with more rainfall in a few short hours than in months before, resulting in a number of distress calls being made across the capital following months of drought. Another area which has been badly affected is Catalonia, with villages in the north-east of the region left flooded and streets covered in ice and hail following a recent storm.
Fifteen people were rescued after their cars were swept away by the waters in Murcia, where schools were shut to try and minimise risk to the public. There were at least 300 landslides triggered across the country, and the flooding has lead to at least 14 deaths with 21 rivers bursting their banks.
The wet weather is set to continue throughout this week in areas including Madrid and Valencia, according to the Met Office, although conditions are set to be less severe than the previous seven days. Holidaymakers are warned that they may experience travel delays and disruption in the affected areas.
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