Storm warnings for Portugal, Spain a week after Kristin destruction
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A view of debris after the passage of storm Kristin, in Praia da Vieira, Leiria, Portugal, on Feb 2.
PHOTO: REUTERS
POMBAL, Portugal – A new storm threatened Portugal and Spain with further flooding and damage from Feb 3, only a week after the deadly Storm Kristin destroyed homes, factories and critical infrastructure.
The Portuguese Institute for the Ocean and Atmosphere (IPMA) expects the new storm, named Leonardo, to hit mainland Portugal from Feb 3 until Feb 7 and Spain from Feb 4.
The Iberian Peninsula has experienced a succession of storms bringing heavy rain, thunder, snow and strong gales in the last few months, with southern Spain facing what some residents describe as its wettest winter in 40 years.
IPMA said Leonardo may bring persistent and at times heavy rain, with wind gusts reaching up to 75kmh along the coast south of Cabo Mondego in the country's central region, and 95kmh in the highlands.
The gusts, however, should be less intense than those exceeding 200 kmh unleashed by Storm Kristin, which were among the strongest winds on record in Portugal and have resulted in six deaths in the country.
Ms Daniela Fraga, deputy commander of national emergency and civil protection authority ANEPC, told reporters late on Feb 2 that heavy rain in the coming days could lead to floods and inundations, mainly in the regions that were affected by Storm Kristin.
Recovery ‘could take years’
Portugal’s Prime Minister Luis Montenegro, on a visit to affected factories in the central town of Pombal, said it could take years for factories, public equipment, roads and railways damaged by the storm to fully recover.
“It was a calamity that affected us... it has already rained a lot, it will continue to rain, and there are many losses,” Mr Montenegro told reporters.
Nearly 115,000 households were still without electricity, around 85,000 of them in the Leiria region in the centre of Portugal, power distribution company E-Redes said.
In Spain, the weather authorities warned of intense and persistent rainfall across the south of the country.
In the Grazalema mountains, accumulated rainfall could exceed 200mm to 250mm in 24 hours. Officials have issued alerts for severe flood risk owing to rising river levels.
The authorities in the southern Andalusia region suspended most classes scheduled for Feb 4, urged residents to avoid non-essential travel and asked for Spain’s military emergency unit to be on stand by in case it is needed. REUTERS
