By Andrew Atkinson reporting live from Los Montesinos Alicante
THE Gota Fria storm that hit Spain on Wednesday night and continued into Thursday morning has left few problems – with roads passable and train services continuing to operate.
In Torrevieja – where up to 22 litres of rain per square metre hit in some areas – it remains passable for people travelling to work on Thursday morning.
The Park of Nations area of Torrevieja, which is a flood point following heavy rain, also remains passable for vehicles.
“Overnight there was between 30 to 40 litres of rain per square metre within the Vega Baja area, with some flooding in the streets – but passable,” a spokesperson from Information de Trafico said.
The rainstorms in the south have eased – for the time being. In the north rains are reportedly continuing.
The Gota Fria hit late on Wednesday night – as forecast – with many schools in the area closed on Thursday, as precautions were made by the authorities.
In La Zenia there are no serious problems following the deluge of water. At 4am on Thursday morning the roads were passable.
The south east areas were particularly hit with the storm – with further rainfall to follow in the next 24 hours.
The train services in Alicante and San Isidro are unaffected by the Gota Fria.
Spain’s state weather agency, AEMET, upgraded its warning, with storms, and torrential to Red alert on Wednesday, as reported by the Costa Blanca and Costa Calida Leader.
In the South of the Alicante province rainfall is forecast to continue, until Friday morning, although at present there is a respite.
In the North of the Alicante province the red alert was forecast by AEMET. A red alert is also in place in the Mar Menor area on the Costa Calida, until 6am Friday.
“At the moment (Thursday morning) there are no problems. But the situation is being monitored and we will have to await and see how it evolves,” said a spokesperson from El Tiempo, Torrevieja.
In the last few minutes there has, however, been a tornado passing through Guardamar which you can see here.
The Los Montesinos, Alicante, Policia have put a warning in place of potential problems, due to the heavy rainfall forecasts.
The height of the storms are scheduled to hit during Thursday and Friday, particularly in the south of the province.
Strong gusts are also forecast in the coastal areas on Thursday and Friday.
However Ontinyent to the north has been absolutely battered as can be seen by following this link
*Ferry crossings, including Majorca and Ibiza, were hit with cancellations following the Gota Fria striking in Spain.
Vehicles on ferry crossings were turned over during rough seas. No casualties have been reported.
Schools in the Alicante and Murcia provinces have closed schools on Thursday and Friday, following the Gota Fria red alert.
Many events scheduled to take place on Wednesday and Thursday have also been cancelled, including
Los Montesinos, Torrevieja, Pilar de la Horadada, San Fulgencio, Orihuela, Orihuela Costa, Los Alcázares, San Pedro del Pinatar and Almoradí.
At present an announcement was made for school closures in San Miguel de Salinas, San Javier and Torre Pacheco on Thursday only.
Despite the heavy rain forecast Villamartin Plaza announced that they would remain open on Wednesday night.
