Red alert for torrential rains in Catalonia: six roads closed

Civil Protection has sent Es-Alert warnings to twelve regions of the Catalan coast and pre-coast. Flooding has closed six roads, especially in Tarragona, and firefighters have rescued occupants of vehicles trapped in Xerta.

Torrential rains have struck Catalonia again this Tuesday afternoon, forcing Civil Protection to activate mass mobile alerts in twelve coastal and pre-coastal regions. The first Es-Alert was sent around 17:45 to residents of Baix Camp, Baix Ebre, Ribera d'Ebre, and Terra Alta, urging them to exercise extreme caution while travelling and to avoid flood-prone areas. This information was reported by elimparcial.es.

Shortly after 19:00, the Generalitat issued a second alert to the regions of Barcelonès, Baix Llobregat, Garraf, Gironès, Maresme, and La Selva on the coast, with mobility recommendations until two in the morning. A third alert, sent at the same time, affected Baix Camp, Baix Ebre, Baix Penedès, Ribera d'Ebre, and Tarragonès, this one valid until 20:00.

The storm has already left six roads closed due to flooding and landslides. According to the Catalan Traffic Service, the affected roads are the C-12 in Xerta, the A-7 in Miami Platja heading south, the T-302 in Benifallet, the TV-3422 in Els Reguers, and the C-352 in the tunnel of Les Franqueses del Vallès. Additionally, the C-43 in Benifallet is closed due to a landslide.

The Firefighters of the Generalitat have had to assist occupants of several vehicles that became trapped in Xerta. In total, emergency services received 1,794 calls and managed 1,426 incidents by 22:00 on Monday, according to data from 112.

By region, Barcelonès accounts for 742 incidents, followed by Vallès Oriental with 559, Maresme with 151, and Vallès Occidental with 141. The most affected municipalities have been Barcelona (587), Granollers (265), and Canovelles (72).

Rural Agents have carried out 50 interventions during Monday, including assisting people, monitoring water levels, and closing access points. In a message on social media X, they urged the public not to approach rivers, streams, or torrents.

Civil Protection warns that on Tuesday, rainfall could exceed 20 litres per square metre in 30 minutes across almost all of Catalonia. In the morning, the rains were concentrated in the extreme south, and in the afternoon, they spread to the rest of the community. During the night, the rainfall will affect the central coast and the south of the Costa Brava, where it could exceed 40 litres per square metre in half an hour.

The firefighters have announced that during the night they will work to "restore normalcy in areas affected by the rains in Vallès Oriental and Maresme." In Vallès Oriental, they have deployed four basic sectors with 20 trucks between Granollers, surrounding municipalities, and Baix Montseny. In Maresme, they have organized three sectors (Mataró, Malgrat de Mar, and Pineda de Mar) with 17 trucks. The operation will prioritise around thirty urgent alerts in these two regions and then assist in street cleaning and draining basements.

This episode follows the storms of the past weekend, which caused two deaths and one missing person in Catalonia, and the rains on Monday, which particularly affected Vallès Oriental, where a minor also went missing.

In light of this situation, authorities recommend avoiding unnecessary travel, not crossing flooded areas, and following the guidance of official channels. The alert for torrential rains remains active in several regions and will be updated as the storm evolves.