Spain’s Costa Blanca has been placed on high alert for heavy rains and officials have warned of ‘extraordinary danger’ as Storm Alice hits the mainland, a year after the country was struck by deadly floods.
AEMET, Spain’s weather agency, on Thursday issued a red alert for heavy rains in holiday hotspot Alicante and said it would be in effect from 10:00 am (0800 GMT) on Friday.
Alicante, in the eastern region of Valencia, suffered catastrophic flooding in October 2024 that claimed the lives of 220 people.
‘Extraordinary danger. Flooding and flash floods may occur. Follow the advice of civil protection,’ the agency wrote on X.
Rainfall totals could exceed 140 millimetres in 12 hours, especially in Valencia, the weather office said.
Other Mediterranean coastal regions are also expected to be affected, including the neighbouring province of Murcia and the Balearic islands.
AEMET said ‘very heavy and persistent rainfall’ was expected until Monday.
‘Showers may result in local flash flooding in low-lying areas, streams and gullies, so the potential danger level of this situation is high’, the agency added.
Spain’s weather agency on Thursday issued its highest alert for heavy rains in Alicante in the eastern region of Valencia. Pictured: A pedestrian walks past a damaged building affected by last year’s flash floods, in Catarroja municipality, Valencia, Spain, 09 October 2025
AEMET said the red alert would be in effect from 10:00 am (0800 GMT) on Friday in Mediterranean coastal regions of the province of Alicante, as well as in the neighbouring region of Murcia
Rainfall totals could exceed 140 millimetres (five and a half inches) in 12 hours, especially in Valencia, the weather office said
The Balearic government said on Thursday it has reinforced emergency services in party island Ibiza after it was placed on an orange alert for rain and storms.
Emergency services on the island of Formentera are also preparing to act quickly and effectively in the case that rainfall causes flooding.
Heavy rainfall began lashing down on eastern Spain on Wednesday evening and is expected to persist throughout the week.
Tourists heading to Spain’s Mediterranean shores have been urged to monitor local weather updates and follow official guidance.
The warning comes nearly a year after widespread flooding in Valencia killed more than 200 people, Spain’s worst natural disaster in decades.
The catastrophe sparked public fury over warning systems and the emergency response.
Residents continue to protest, accusing officials of having failed to provide timely alerts.
Heavy rains lashed the region again last month, forcing the closure of schools and universities, disrupting rail and road travel and causing localised flooding.
Costa Blanca has been placed on high alert for heavy rains and flooding from Storm Alice as it hits the mainland
AEMET, Spain’s weather agency, on Thursday issued a red alert for heavy rains in holiday hotspot Alicante
The warning comes nearly a year after widespread flooding in Valencia killed more than 200 people. Pictured: People work to clear mud and debris from a street in Aldaia, Valencia on November 5, 2024
The catastrophe sparked public fury over warning systems and the emergency response. Pictured: A view of wrecked cars stored in a junkyard outside Paiporta after they were damaged by flooding in Valencia, Spain on November 10, 2024
People walk past piled up debris in the flood-hit municipality of Catarroja, Valencia province, Spain, 05 November 2024
Because a hotter atmosphere holds more water that evaporates from a rapidly warming Mediterranean Sea, climate change increases the risk and intensity of flooding from extreme rainfall in the region.
The European Commission last week said it had earmarked an aid package of 945million euros (£820million) to help Spain’s recovery from the deadliest flash floods in Spain’s modern history.
Almost 240 people died in the country after torrential rains last October triggered floods that swept through eastern and southeastern Spain.
The most severely hit area was Valencia’s southern suburbs where more than 220 people died.
Spain allocated 2.3billion euros (£2billion) in aid to reconstruct areas of the region hit by floods, which Prime Minister Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said were caused by climate change.
The European Commission said on Friday the total earmarked aid for recovery from the floods would be close to 1.6billion euros, with an additional 645million euros coming from Spain’s cohesion funds that would be reallocated.
‘This commitment reflects our determination to help member states build greater resilience and withstand future crises,’ European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in the statement.