Campo on red alert amid flooding fears, no major incidents overnight in Gib
Main Street was deserted on Wednesday morning, many shops shut over concerns about bad weather.
Spain’s state meteorological agency, Aemet, issued a red alert for severe weather in the Campo de Gibraltar on Wednesday, as Storm Leonardo battered the region with strong winds and heavy rain.
Gibraltar has so far avoided any significant impact as a result of the weather, with both the Gibraltar Government and the Royal Gibraltar Police saying there had been no major incidents overnight despite torrential rain and gale force gusts of wind.
Ahead of the storm, many businesses opted to close for the day.
Main Street on Wednesday morning was deserted even though the weather had eased significantly, many shops shuttered and only a handful of people out and about.
Authorities here remain on high alert and are closely monitoring developments.
Stephanie Ball, chief meteorologist at MeteoGib, said that at 10am, the highest rainfall so far from Storm Leonardo was 50mm at the airport.
Winds overnight gusted to gale force and 44 knots at the airport, with 46 knots recorded on MeteoGib’s Weather Station, the equivalent of around 85 km per hour.
“Winds eased slightly for this morning but are expected to pick up again at times into this afternoon, generally blowing gale force down towards Europa Point but with gusts expected to reach gale force elsewhere and 80-90km/h,” Ms Ball told the Chronicle.
“Winds early today in Algeciras reached severe gale and 100km/h with a small risk we could see an isolated gust [of that intensity in Gibraltar], more likely at Europa Point.”
“Further rain today but heaviest expected this morning.”
“Overnight, there will still be some rain affecting the area and staying windy, with winds still locally gale force in exposed areas.”
In the Campo, Aemet’s red alert will remain in place until at least 3pm amid fears of flooding and rainfall accumulation that could reach up to 120 litres per square metre in just a few hours and gusts of wind of up to 100 km per hour.
Overnight, the storm forced the evacuation of hundreds of residents from areas close to rivers across the Campo, with fallen trees cutting off some roads and power cuts in different parts of the area.
Municipal sports halls in Algeciras, San Roque and Los Barrios have taken in dozens of people who have had to leave their homes as a precaution.
The main concern at the moment is the rise in river levels coupled to open areas that are sodden from recent rainfall and increase the risk of flooding.
Emergency services in Spain a placing particular focus on the Palmones, Guadiaro, Guadarranque and Hozgarganta rivers, as well as the Charco Redondo reservoir, which was already at 97% of its capacity.
