Spain’s Balearic Islands Grapple with Severe Flooding

(MENAFN) Torrential downpours pummeled the Balearic Islands on Tuesday, causing widespread flooding, shutting down public transportation, and compelling officials to keep schoolchildren indoors for their protection.

Spain’s meteorological agency AEMET reported that Ibiza and Formentera experienced extreme rainfall levels, with up to 200 liters per square meter falling within two hours, and forecasts predicting as much as 180 liters per square meter over 12 hours. The intense storm overwhelmed drainage infrastructure, submerging key access routes into Ibiza town.

Authorities raised the alert level to red early Tuesday morning, maintaining it until 4 p.m. local time, though Spain’s highest alert currently stands at orange.

Emergency services chief Pablo Garriz, cited by El Mundo, explained that “the storm’s intensity evolved throughout the day, requiring a reevaluation of the situation as problems escalated.”

The regional government suspended afternoon classes, urging parents not to retrieve their children, emphasizing that “students remained safe under teachers’ supervision.” Civil Protection issued mobile alerts to all phones on Ibiza at noon, warning of a “serious flood risk” and advising residents to remain indoors, avoid rivers and low-lying zones, and seek higher floors if water entered their homes.

In response, major ring roads on the island were closed and public transport suspended.

This severe weather follows flooding triggered by storm Gabrielle on Monday, which drenched Spain’s Valencia, Catalonia, and Aragon regions. Police reported rescuing multiple people stranded in vehicles after receiving as much as 100 liters of rain per square meter within hours.

Aldaia, a town near Valencia, was heavily impacted when the La Saleta ravine overflowed into central streets, although flood barriers successfully held back further damage.

Spain has witnessed a rise in extreme weather events recently, a trend scientists associate with climate change. Last October, the region suffered one of Spain’s deadliest natural disasters, when torrential rains claimed around 232 lives and caused extensive destruction.

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