Spain weather: 'Subtropical' storm to batter holiday hotspot with hail and lightning TODAY

Spain’s state meteorological agency, Aemet, has warned residents and tourists about the impact of the storm expected to strike tonight and tomorrow. According to Spanish news outlet ABC, the severe “subtropical” weather will hit the Iberian Peninsula, approaching from the northwest of the Canary Islands.

The storm is set to impact most of the Iberian peninsula, land covering Spain, Portugal, Gibraltar and a part of southern France.

The regions for which today’s warning has been issued are: Huesca, Teruel, Zaragoza, Asturias, Cantabria, Burgos, Palencia, Soria, León, Lérida, Lugo, Orense, Navarra, Vizcaya, Álava, La Rioja and Castellón.

The list is extended tomorrow to include five more regions which could be affected. These are: Barcelona, Girona, Valencia, Cuenca and Guadalajara.

Spanish media said the rain will first reach the north of Galicia and Asturias and, throughout the day, clouds will appear in large areas of the Iberian Peninsula.

The intensity is expected to be stronger in the north and more scattered in the south, with the possibility of dry storms that can aggravate the risk of fire.

The phenomenon will be more intense on Thursday with the subtropical storm located just above the centre of the peninsula.

On the Cantabrian coast, showers may be locally persistent while the area could be affected by heavy hail.

In a matter of two days, 40 litres/m2 may accumulate in the north and northeast of the peninsula, meteorologists have warned.

The rainy weather comes as the country is burning during a scorching summer with extremely high temperatures.

Multiple regions of Spain are at risk of the heatwave that sends the mercury near 40C degrees in what has been so far one of the hottest summers in the country’s history.

People in Valencia, Madrid, Cáceres, Badajoz, Lérida, Toledo, Cuenca, Zamora, Valladolid, Zaragoza, Huesca and Córdoba are advised to protect themselves from the boiling heat.

The high temperatures that have ravaged the peninsula and the lack of rainfall have left a bleak picture for Spain, with drought and forest fires having marked the summer season.

According to the European Forest Fire Information System portal, this year has been the third driest of the current century.

Additional reporting Maria Ortega

source: express.co.uk