Trees torn in half in Valencia as Spanish region hit by huge storm

The region of Valencia was hit by a huge storm on Monday September 8th, with intense rainfall and gusts of wind of up to 100km per hour.

The storm caused several trees to come down, particularly in the province of Alicante. The Valencia Provincial Fire Brigade even reported that one had fallen on a school bus in the municipality of Alzira, but that thankfully no one was injured.

Several trees also blocked a road in the Alicante town of Orihuela, but there have also been reported incidents from other places in the province including Redován, Cox, Callosa de Segura and Vega Baja, including temporary loss of power.

The meteorological event has been described by Spanish meteorologists as a reventón húmedo, a wet downburst.

Downburst are localised strong wind events that are caused by a strong downdraft within a thunderstorm, and those that include precipitation are known as wet downbursts. In a nutshell, heavy rain and very strong winds.

According to Spain's General Directorate of Traffic (DGT), heavy rains have caused road closures on the CV870 highway in Benferri, as well as on the CV868, CV900, and N340 highways in the municipality of Orihuela, all in the Vega Baja region.

The danger is not over, however, and Valencia has been put on level 1 emergency due to the possibility of flooding.

Several municipalities in the south of the region have also been issued with an orange alert this Tuesday due to rain and storms. Twenty municipalities in Alicante have cancelled classes today as a precaution.

The storm is now said to moving north along the coast, causing Tarragona, Barcelona and the Balearics to be put on orange alert as of Tuesday September 9th.

In Tarragona, Aemet has forecast of up to 90 liters per square metre in just one hour.

In the rest of the Valencian and Catalan regions yellow warnings remain in place today, where showers and thunderstorms are expected.

It's now almost a year since the storms and deadly flooding in Valencia in which 236 people lost their lives.

This time everyone is on high alert. Valencian President Carlos Mazón has already travelled to Vega Baja to assess the situation there. He has urged people to take extreme precautions and follow the recommendations of 112 and emergency services.

There are fears that these intense storms are becoming a yearly occurrence in the eastern region, particularly around autumn.

READ ALSO: Why is Spain's Valencia region so prone to destructive flooding?

Scientists insist human-driven climate change is intensifying extreme weather events such as the torrential rain behind the deaths of more than 200 people in Valencia on October 29th 2024.

The catastrophic situation was further fuelled by a rapidly warming Mediterranean Sea, as oceans have absorbed 90 percent of the excess heat produced by human activity since the dawn of the industrial age.

After a summer of ferocious wildfires that burned a record amount of territory, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has proposed a national pact against climate change which all political parties abide by.