Get your umbrellas ready. The Costa Blanca has issued a weather warning as it gears up for heavy rain and storms.
Experts at the University of Alicante’s Climatology Laboratory (UA) have warned of a complex weather episode. This is linked to the remnants of Hurricane Gabrielle, which will reach Spain as a post-tropical depression.
The system is set to collide with an upper-level trough and a subtropical air mass full of humidity. They say this is a recipe for locally intense rain and thunderstorms. Climatologists stress this is not unusual: Europe often sees the remains of hurricanes in autumn, usually in the form of depressions.
What we know so far
- Aemet alert: The State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) has already activated a yellow alert for southern Alicante on Monday 29 September. Up 20 litres per square metre is expected in one hour.
- Heaviest rainfall: Northern and inland parts of the province could be hit hardest, with as much as 40 litres per square metre in one hour. With totals reaching 140 litres in 12 hours.
- Biggest risk period: Aemet highlights Monday 29 and Tuesday 30 September as the most adverse days Warnings are of 200–250 mm of rainfall in the southern Valencian Community, potentially torrential.
Costa Blanca weather warning: Tricky situation
UA climatologists call the outlook “quite complex”. They stress that forecasts may change significantly depending on Gabrielle’s exact trajectory after Tuesday.
For now, Aemet explains that low pressure over southern Spain, combined with high pressure to the north, will drive a humid easterly flow along the Mediterranean. Add in subtropical moisture and upper-level instability, and the mix could deliver very heavy, persistent, and stormy downpours.
