The Japan Times - Spain, Portugal face fresh storms, torrential rain

In Portugal, the latest depression -- christened Storm Marta -- has prompted the deployment of more than 26,500 rescuers and led three municipalities to postpone by a week a presidential vote meant to be held on Sunday.

The Iberian Peninsula is on the front lines of climate change in Europe. It has been experiencing increasingly prolonged heat waves and more frequent, intense episodes of heavy rainfall for several years.

Both Spain and Portugal have issued warnings over potential fresh floods, after inundations that have blocked hundreds of roads, disrupted trains and forced thousands to evacuate from the rising waters.

In Spain, much of the country's south, particularly the region of Andalusia, was placed on orange alert on Saturday, as was the north-west, which was facing heavy rain and violent storms.

"We have never seen such a series of storms," said Andalusia's regional president, Juan Manuel Moreno, describing the situation as "complex" with dozens of roads cut off, rail traffic largely suspended, and a total of “more than 11,000 people” evacuated.

He said the farming sector was badly hit, adding it would cost over 500 million euros ($590 million) to repair roads.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez held a crisis meeting on Saturday, a day after visiting flood-affected areas.

Evacuated from Grazalema, one of the hardest-hit municipalities in Andalusia, residents were taken in at a gymnasium in the city of Ronda.

- Children 'suffering' -

"Yesterday, I was told this would last a long time," said Jesus Ramírez, a 37-year-old resident. "It won’t be a week or two -- it could be longer."

"There are a lot of children who are suffering," added Nieves de los Santos, a 67-year-old pensioner.

Sevilla Football Club announced that its home match against Girona, scheduled for Saturday evening, had been postponed by the authorities to ensure spectator safety.

Portuguese Prime Minister Luis Montenegro meanwhile said 2026 was a "particularly unusual year" with "exceptionally violent" climatic conditions.

Several landslides were reported in Portugal but there were no casualties, authorities said.

The risk of flooding from the Tagus river in the country's central Santarem region remained at its highest level, authorities said. They added that, further south, in Alcacer do Sal, the waters of the Sado river had receded to the banks.

According to meteorologists, the Storm Marta depression was expected to move north and start pulling away from Portugal by the end of the day, on the eve of the second round of the presidential election.

- Morocco also hit -

Portugal had already been reeling from the effects of Storm Kristin, which led to the deaths of five people, injured hundreds and left tens of thousands without power, when Leonardo hit earlier this week.

One person died during the passage of Storm Leonardo earlier this week and 1,100 people were evacuated across the country, according to the authorities.

Several hundred kilometres (miles) farther south, Morocco has also been hit by a series of violent storms which have displaced 150,000 people in the northwest of the country in recent days.

Scientists say human-driven climate change is increasing the length, intensity and frequency of extreme weather events, such as the floods and heatwaves that have struck both countries in recent years.

K.Abe--JT