New Spain travel warning issued after Malaga hit by storm and homes 'decimated'
The Government has issued new safety advice for Brits in Spain as the country continues to endure treacherous weather conditions.
Severe rain alerts have been issued for popular holiday destination, and thousands of people have been evacuated from Malaga due to a powerful storm that has hit weeks after Valencia was hit by deadly flash floods.
On Wednesday, November 13, the UK Foreign Office issued an urgent warning to UK passport holders thinking of travelling to or already in the country's Mediterranean coastline, which includes the holiday hotspots of Malaga, Alicante, Almeria and Benidorm.
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The organisation, which issues advice and updates for those travelling abroad, has warned of possible travel disruption and is urging UK holidaymakers to follow local advice.
It reads: "Severe weather and flooding is affecting many areas along the Mediterranean coastline of Spain. In particular, many parts of the Valencia region and Castilla La Mancha continue to be severely affected by recent flooding.
"Journeys may be affected. Check the latest weather warnings from Spain’s meteorological office before you travel and follow instructions from local authorities."
Since yesterday, a powerful storm has dumped a month's worth of rain on the area and the Independent reports that as of Thursday morning (November 14), severe weather warnings remain in place.
Emergency teams were repeatedly called out overnight, mainly to areas left devastated by last month's flooding, which killed more than 200 people after torrents of mud-stained water wreaked havoc from Malaga to Valencia's east coast.
The more recent flooding has hit areas still reeling from that disaster. In the Malaga province, homes were reportedly “decimated” by flooding on Wednesday.
Around 3,000 people living along the Guadalhorce River and a further 1,100 near the Vélez River have been evacuated, according to the latest local reports. The city’s main hospital has been forced to restrict admissions to emergencies only after the streets flooded with water again.
Meteorologists are warning that even more rivers could overflow before the end of this latest severe weather event, which has also caused havoc at Malaga Airport. Euroweeklynews reports that one flight has been cancelled and several have already been diverted, causing a backlog.
Airport management company Aena were forced to respond after social media footage circulated online showing flooded spots within Malaga Airport. It reassured passengers that these "wet zones" haven’t compromised boarding areas or plane movement.
Locals in the village of Benamargosa have been pictured clearing water and mud away from properties. Residents described houses being “decimated” after the river running through the centre of the village burst its banks yesterday.
Sur in English reports that the local mayor is advising residents who live near the river to "move to higher ground."
It also reports that there has been 85.8mm of rainfall in a day in the Salto del Negro in Cútar, along the river Benamargosa, and 42.9mm in Alcaucín, according to data collected by the Hidrosur network of the Junta de Andalucía.
Andrew Poole, a British expat living in Benamargosa, told the Independent: “We’re about 40 minutes away from Malaga in a little village. Normally the river that flows through is dry, it’s actually used as the local car park.
“We got an alert on our phone on the evening before the storms hit, a red alert for the whole area, and then the waters started to come down and it didn’t stop. And then it got worse, and the water levels just started to rise.
“At teatime yesterday, the river itself burst its banks right in the heart of the village ... the emergency services, the locals, everyone’s pulling together, working all the way through the night just trying to clear some of the roads in and out so people who have been trapped by the floodwaters, the emergency services can get in to see them.
“Everyone’s houses, businesses [have been] fully decimated. It’s just so sad.”
At the time of writing,, yellow weather warnings are also in force further north in Avila, as well as southern Salamanca and northern Caceres. There are also warnings along the coastlines of Granada and Almeria, and inland at Murcia, Alcaraz and Segura.
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