Flooding in Spain continues to cause problems in Catalonia, where two people died and rescue teams are searching for a man missing after a flash flood in the Pineda de Mar area. The situation is worst in the province of Barcelona, where heavy rains in recent days have flooded streets, homes, roads and railway lines.
One victim died in Tordera after a wall fell on him. The second was found in a flooded garage in Montrones del Valles. The search in Pineda de Mar resumed on Monday with the participation of firefighters, marine rescuers and security forces. Separately, Spanish media reported a second person wanted in Granollers, but details of the case are still being clarified.
Granollers is among the most affected areas
92 liters of rain per square meter were measured in Granollers in less than an hour. In the regions of Valles and Maresme, the accumulated amounts in three days exceeded 300 liters per square meter. The water blocked cars, flooded basements and disrupted train traffic.
The Besos River reached a flow rate of 936 cubic meters per second at Santa Coloma de Gramanet. According to data from the Catalan Water Agency, this is the highest rise in the river this century. Despite the critically high level, there was no overflow.
The fire department received more than 1,500 reports of flooded buildings, stuck cars and the need for evacuation. Up to 13 people were rescued from cars that had fallen into the water. The heavy rains disrupted the work of the hospitals “Val d’Ebron“ in Barcelona and “General de Granollers“, where some activities were reorganized.
Warnings remain in force
The Catalan authorities sent warning messages to residents of several areas and urged people to limit travel, stay away from rivers and ravines and avoid underground spaces. Temporary traffic restrictions were imposed in areas around Barcelona and Girona. Rail lines, roads, flights and school activities were affected.
The Spanish meteorological service is expecting more heavy rainfall and thunderstorms on Tuesday and Wednesday. According to the Catalan civil protection service, the danger could start to decrease between Thursday and Friday, but the risk of local flooding remains due to already waterlogged soils and high river levels.
The president of Catalonia, Salvador Illa, announced a 75 million euro package for the affected municipalities. "Now we must focus all our efforts on recovery," he said.
Incidents related to the heavy rains were also recorded in the rest of Spain. In Bilbao, streets and basements were flooded, and in Castile and Leon, authorities warned of the risk of overflowing reservoirs and contamination of water supplies in areas previously affected by fires.
Sources: rtve.es, elpais.com, cadenaser.com