Spanish authorities are bracing for “hurricane-force” winds of up to 80mph after a red alert was issued for the Canary Islands.
Residents and tourists have been urged to take shelter as Storm Nuria looks set to bring high-wind speeds to the archipelago, just two weeks after the islands were battered by Spain’s last named storm.
La Palma, in the north west of the island group, will face the strongest winds, possibly exceeding 80mph, and heavy rain of up to 30mm in just one hour. The eastern half of the island is under a red weather warning that will remain in place until around 5pm on Thursday, Spanish forecaster AEMET said.
Storm Nuria will also hit Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura, La Gomera, El Hierro and the popular tourist island Tenerife with winds of up to 62mph. Amber warnings for wind have been issued for the islands.
It is the 14th named storm in the Spanish storm-naming season, coming just two weeks after Storm Martinho battered holiday hotspots in the Canary Islands.
Sharing the possibility of wind speeds exceeding 80mph in the eastern side of La Palma island, AEMET said: “The danger is extraordinary. Extreme caution!”
The forecaster added on X: “The formation of the storm Nuria this Thursday will lead to very strong gusts of wind in the Canary Islands (hurricane-force winds in La Palma, where there is a red warning in its eastern area).
“It will also bring heavy rains to the archipelago, which will then move to the Peninsula.”
All amber warnings are currently set to be lifted on Thursday at 10pm, Aemet says. By Friday, there will be no weather warnings remaining in place.
Yellow rain warnings have also been issued southwestern areas of the Spanish mainland, AEMET’s website showed, with rain accumulations of up to 15mm in one hour possible, including in Catalonia, Basque Country and Andalusia.
Two weeks ago, Spain was battered by strong winds, large swells and intense rainfall as Storm Martinho struck large parts of the country.
Dozens of roads were closed and the Spanish government urged residents to avoid travel accordingly, due to forecast heavy rain and the water levels of the Manzanares River in Madrid remaining high.
AEMET said storm Martinho was heaping more rain onto areas on Friday and through the weekend that have already experienced plenty of rain in the last few weeks.
