Flood-hit Spain drenched by wettest October on record

MADRID: Spain was soaked in its wettest October on record last month which culminated in catastrophic floods that have killed 219 people and left dozens missing, the government said today.

An average of 147 litres per sq m (147mm) drenched mainland Spain last month, making it the wettest October since records began in 1961, national weather service AEMET and the ecological transition ministry said.

The deluge was 189% above the 1991-2020 reference period for the month and came as temperatures were 0.9°C warmer than average, they added in a statement.

The downpours peaked during a ferocious Mediterranean storm on Oct 29 which unleashed torrents of muddy water that desolated the eastern Valencia region in Spain’s deadliest floods in decades.

At one measuring station in the Valencia region town of Turis, 771mm of rain fell on that day alone.

Although Mediterranean storms are common for the time of year, scientists say climate change driven by human activity is increasing the intensity, length and frequency of extreme weather events.

The rainfall that triggered the floods was 12% heavier and twice as likely compared to the world before global warming, the World Weather Attribution group of scientists have said.