Spain weather: storm hits apartment block in Tenerife as flooding and heavy rain affects Mediterranean coast
An apartment block in Tenerife has been battered by huge waves, as a storm hit the holiday island.
The Mar y Sol building is in the town of Mesa del Mar to the north of the island, which is popular with British holidaymakers.
The alert for a strong maritime storm was issued on Saturday.
According to the local Taroconte council, which Mesa del Mar is part of, 67 apartments in the block had been evacuated. The building has been badly damaged, said the council.
Beaches, roads and pools near Mesa del Mar have also been shut.
A statement from the Canary Islands government said that there were swells of between four and five metres to the north and west of the islands.
Separately, heavy rain has caused severe flooding in south eastern Spain, with a video shared via Severe Weather Europe on Facebook showing cars underwater in San Janvier, Murcia. Spain’s weather agency Agencia Estatal de Meteorología issued a yellow weather alert, warning of heavy rain until Monday evening.
The local Murcia government has closed roads in the towns of Cartagena, San Javier, Pacheco Tower, San Pedro del Pinatar, Los Alcázares and Mazarrón. Patricio Valverde, minister of development and infrastructure, said that drivers should exercise “extreme caution”, only drive if absolutely necessary and avoid secondary roads.
There has also been heavy rainfall on Spain’s Mediterranean coast. The city of Gandía, near Valencia, and the surrounding area recorded almost 300mm of rainfall, with a state of emergency issued in some towns, according to El Pais.
There was also heavy rain further up the coast towards Alicante. Another video shared on Severe Weather Europe showed heavy rainwater swells in the town of Torrovieja last night.
The Agencia Estatal de Meteorología this morning noted an “extreme risk” of heavy rain for north Alicante, stating that 180mm of rainfall is expected in 12 hours. Alicante, on the Costa Blanca, is a popular holiday town for Brits.
