TL:DR – Thousands Evacuated from Homes in Spain Due to Devastating Storm Leonardo
- Spain and Portugal are facing severe weather from Storm Leonardo, causing heavy rainfall and flooding, with at least one confirmed death and one missing person in Malaga.
- Up to 23 inches of rain are expected, triggering evacuations for over 3,000 residents in affected areas.
- Power outages, disrupted travel, and school closures are widespread in southern Spain, particularly Andalusia.
- The weather system may impact the UK, with yellow warnings for rain and snow issued across several regions.
Thousands forced to leave their homes across Spain after Storm Leonardo hits | News World
Spain and Portugal have been swept by a flurry of winter storms, with the latest bout of torrential rain and flooding killing at least one person.
Storm Leonardo Hits the Iberian Peninsula
The Iberian Peninsula has been hit by a spate of storms, with the latest one, Storm Leonardo, lashing the region with over 15 inches of rain within 24 hours. Some areas are expected to see up to 23 inches of rain, an exceptional amount for this time of February, according to the Met Office.
A man in his 60s was confirmed dead in Portugal after floodwater trapped his car, while a girl is missing in Malaga, southern Spain, after trying to rescue her dog from a swollen river. Rescuers tried to find the girl who was swept away by the Turvilla river.
A man wades through waterlogged streets in Alcacer do Sal, south Portugal (Picture: AFP/Getty Images)
Neighbours and volunteer rescuers helped an elderly man in Grazalema, Cadiz (Picture: EPA)
Flooding and Evacuations in Southern Spain
Malaga’s fire chief, Manuel Marmolejo, said: ‘We spent the whole afternoon and night yesterday searching in the river from the place where the girl fell in until the very end of the river. We found the dog, but not her.’ Andalusia, on Spain’s southern coast, is among the worst-hit areas, with power outages and travel disruptions adding to the plight of more than 3,000 people forced to evacuate.
The region was placed under a rare red alert after torrential rain, flooding and risk of landslides, and thousands of soldiers were called in to help with the evacuations.
A resident tried to empty water out of his home in Grazalema, Cadiz, in Andalusia, Spain yesterday (Picture: EPA)
Villages and towns have been overwhelmed by flooding in southern Spain due to Storm Leonardo (Picture: AFP/Getty Images)
Travel Disruptions in Andalusia
Most train services have been paralysed in Andalusia for the second day, including medium distance and high-speed trains, and schools have been shut in most of Andalusia’s provinces. Portugal was already reeling from the devastation of Storm Kristin last week when Leonardo hit. At least six people were killed in the country last week in the wake of Storm Kristin.
Montemor-o-Velho resident Joao Paulo Oliveira inspected the flood damage in his house in southern Portugal (Picture: EPA)
Future Storms and Flood Risks
And the weather has more in store, with another rough weather front – Storm Marta – set to land over the weekend. The ongoing devastation has triggered memories of the 2024 floods in Spain, which wreaked havoc in Valencia, Albacete and Malaga in particular. The Met Office said the Valencia flooding was caused by intense downpours, while the current event is driven by widespread and prolonged rainfall.
Mondego River in Portugal has burst its banks after prolonged heavy rain (Picture: Forca Aerea Portuguesa/AFP)
The ‘Pozo de los Humos’ waterfall (Well of Smoke) in Salamanca is seeing an exceptional waterflow due to the rain (Picture: AFP/Getty Images)
Will Storm Leonardo Affect the UK?
While the worst of Storm Leonardo will be contained in the Iberian Peninsula, there is a link between it and the wet weather front in the UK. The Met Office has issued yellow weather warnings for rain and snow, in place across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland ahead of the weekend.
The continuous rain and snow, marking a wet January across the UK and Europe, has been caused by an unusually strong, southerly jet stream, the forecaster said. The jet stream has pushed low-pressure fronts north-eastwards into the British Isles like ‘a conveyor belt,’ bringing with it rain, strong winds, and wintry risks like snow.