Tag Archives: DANA

Meteorological phenomenon known as a ‘DANA’ pounds Spain with three months of rain in 24 hours

Valencia Spain flood

Important Takeaways:

  • The flooding began at lunchtime on Tuesday, wreaking havoc from the provinces of Malaga in the south to Valencia in the east.
  • Tragically, a baby was listed as one of the casualties by officials on Wednesday, with a reported national death toll now sitting at 64.
  • It is the worst flood-related natural disaster to hit Spain in almost 30 years – after flooding in 1996 killed 87.
  • Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez gave an emergency briefing this morning saying: “Our thoughts go out to those whose homes and possessions have been devastated and whose lives have been covered in mud.
  • President of the Valencia region Carlos Mazon said in a chilling statement: “There are bodies and bodies continuing to appear in places we hadn’t been able to access before.”
  • Officials have said it is “Impossible” to put a definite number on the amount of people killed.
  • A severe weather warning has been issued in Catalonia, northern Spain, marking a move away from the hard-hit southern and eastern regions.
  • Meteocat, the Catalan weather service, has warned of hail that could be as big as two centimeters and possible tornadoes or waterspouts.
  • Their warning sits at a level six – the highest possible.
  • In one small area on the outskirts of Valencia city, 40 people are either dead or missing, police sources said.
  • Chiva, a town near Valencia, was pummeled by more than a year’s worth of rain in just eight hours.
  • There are also fears the Cirat-Vallat dam – in Castellon, north of Valencia, could burst with officials putting out a warning after they couldn’t open the gates.
  • Why was Spain hit by flooding?
  • In layman’s terms, more warm and moist Mediterranean air than usual was sucked high into the atmosphere after a cold system hit the country from the south.
  • The easterly wind then pushed all those clouds and rain into eastern Spain.
  • Three to four months of rain fell in some places over the space of 24 hours.
  • The DANA system hit southern Spain as it arrived from Morocco yesterday and is now expected to head west over southern Portugal.

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