Spain issues highest flood alerts after woman dies near Barcelona

Spain faced further flood danger on 18 October after a woman died near Barcelona and heavy rain disrupted roads and flights across the country. The state weather agency, AEMET, issued its highest red alert for Valencia and Mallorca ahead of torrential rain forecast for the early hours of 19 October, according to AFP.

AEMET described the expected rain as an ‘extraordinary danger’. Authorities suspended classes in Mallorca, Ibiza and Formentera, while some commuter trains in Valencia were suspended until further notice. The warnings came as a Mediterranean storm was forecast to intensify on 19 October, AFP reported.

Flooding disrupts roads and flights

Airport operator Aena reported 27 cancelled flights and 16 diversions in Ibiza, along with 37 cancellations in Mallorca, AFP said. Troops were deployed from mainland Spain to assist on the two islands. Mass telephone alerts in parts of Valencia, the Balearic Islands and Andalusia urged people to avoid unnecessary travel.

In Andalusia, emergency services reported dozens of rescues, including 10 people brought out of a flooded tunnel on a beach promenade near Málaga, according to AFP. Reuters reported that Catalan authorities had also urged residents to stay away from waterways as roads closed and train services were reduced.

Woman found dead after Cabrera de Mar flooding

The Catalan fire service said a woman who entered a stream in Cabrera de Mar on 17 October was later found dead in the sea, AFP reported. Reuters, citing authorities, described the 35-year-old as having been swept away while trying to cross a river with her children. The accounts differ on the precise circumstances of how she entered the water.

Cabrera de Mar mayor Óscar Fernández told reporters that the woman had attended a basketball match where people were asked to remain inside because of the torrential rain, according to Reuters. Reuters said her death brought the reported toll from heavy rain and flooding over the preceding 15 days to five.

Valencia was hit by Spain’s deadliest floods in a generation in 2024, AFP reported. The agency said AEMET had announced that September 2026 was mainland Spain’s hottest September on record, following its warmest summer between June and August. Scientists say warmer Mediterranean waters can increase evaporation and intensify the heavy autumn rain that affects eastern Spain; that general pattern does not establish the cause of this individual storm.