Torrential Rain in Southern Spain: At Least One Dead and Two Missing
Body of Missing Person Found in Alhaurín el Grande Amid Ongoing Search Efforts
“Rescue services in Spain reported on Sunday that a body was discovered in the area of Alhaurín el Grande, Malaga, where search efforts for missing persons are currently underway. The teams are continuing to work in the area,” they announced on social media platform X.
Authorities and the Civil Guard revealed that one more individual is still being sought in that region, along with a third person near Granada.
Videos circulating on social media late Saturday into Sunday showcased streets in various southern Spanish locales completely submerged, as rescue teams began cleaning and securing operations early Sunday morning.
The National Meteorological Agency (Aemet) downgraded the alert level in Andalusia from red to orange by late morning. However, heavy rainfall was still concentrated along the Valencian coast, which had already been severely affected by deadly floods the previous year.
“Torrential rains are expected along the southern coast of Valencia, with a high risk of flooding and flash floods,” Aemet warned on X, noting that the red alert would remain in effect until at least 7:59 PM local time (6:59 PM GMT) on Sunday.
The neighboring region of Murcia was also hit by severe rainfall on Sunday.
These new episodes of torrential rain come just over a year after the catastrophic floods of October 2024, which claimed more than 230 lives, primarily in the Valencia region of eastern Spain.
Spain, being on the front lines of climate change in Europe, has faced a surge in extreme weather events in recent years, characterized by longer and more intense heatwaves in the summer and instances of torrential downpours, linked to rising levels of human-induced greenhouse gases.
