Spain, Portugal hit by torrential rain
Farmers in Spain and Portugal say crops worth millions of euros have been wiped out after a so-called storm train of consecutive devastating weather fronts caused torrential rain and high winds across the Iberian Peninsula, wreaking havoc, leaving fields flooded and leading to several deaths.
In southern Spain, Miguel Angel Perez, a representative of farming trade body COAG in Cadiz province, told public broadcaster TVE it was "a real natural catastrophe … it is raining without stopping. Crops like broccoli, carrots, and cauliflowers are under water. Thousands of hectares, inundated."
Last week, state meteorological agency AEMET reported that a weather front known as Storm Leonardo had dumped more than 600 liters of rain per square meter in just 36 hours. More than 11,000 people have had to leave their homes in the Andalusia region of southern Spain, and in the north of the country, a snowplow driver died when his vehicle fell down a slope in a mountain pass.
More bad weather is expected as part of the next weather front, but AEMET said it was expected to be "less exceptional" than what had already occurred. However, the huge amounts of rain that have already fallen mean that anything more will struggle to be absorbed by the ground, making it more hazardous.
The weather has also claimed at least five lives in Portugal, where the second round of voting in the country's presidential election is taking place this weekend.
Andre Ventura, the candidate for the far-right Chega party, called for a one-week delay because of the disruption, saying it was "a matter of equality among all Portuguese". But the national electoral authority said the vote would go ahead as planned, adding that "a state of calamity, weather alerts, or overall unfavorable situations are not in themselves a sufficient reason to postpone voting in a town or region".
A preliminary estimate from Portugal's Ministry of Agriculture at the end of last week said losses to the agricultural and forestry sectors could be around 750 million euros ($886 million), with more extreme conditions on the way.
Jose Pimenta Machado, president of the Portuguese Environment Agency, said that torrential rain had seen the country's dams release "a volume of water equivalent to the country's annual consumption" in just three days, and Prime Minister Luis Montenegro has extended a state of calamity in 69 municipalities across the country until the middle of the month, saying that "unprecedented" rainfall and flood risks remained a major concern in many regions, with overall estimated damage being in excess of 4 billion euros.
