Stormy week ahead as fresh gales and heavy rain forecast 

The Rock is set to endure another week of unsettled weather following Storm Kristin last week as another storm brought the start of wind and rain on Monday morning.   

According to MeteoGib Chief Meteorologist Steph Ball, by 1pm the squall line had potential to generate severe gale force gusts of up to 100km/h, with heavy rain and a rumble of thunder and 16mm of rainfall recorded by that point.  

In addition to the high winds, Ms Ball predicted "an extremely wet week with more widespread Gales developing again" on social media. 

“Forecasts remain extremely worrying given already saturated grounds and high river levels, with models continuing to forecast the potential for some extremely high totals over the next 5-7days and upward of 200mm across parts of nearby Spain, and now as much as 500m over the Sierra de Grazalema.” 

“From Tuesday night through Wednesday & Thursday, the signal is for some very windy conditions to set in with more widespread Gales, with gusts 40-50kts - like we saw last week, some models are suggesting gusts might potentially reach Severe Gale again and 50-55kts (around 100km/h or so).” 

The first flight of the day, the easyJet from Birmingham, diverted to Malaga and passengers were bussed between airports.  

The second flight, the British Airways from Heathrow, also diverted to Malaga, but made an attempt to return later in the afternoon.  

A failed first attempt to land had passengers being held off to the East side while the pilot assessed the situation.  

The second attempt to land was also unsuccessful and the plane flew back to Malaga having held off for approximately an hour. 

JANUARY 

Despite the heavy rainfall in recent days, last January was not Gibraltar’s wettest on record, according to the Met Office. 

“January 2026 saw an accumulation of 299.4 mm of rainfall over the month,” the MetOffice told the Chronicle.  

“This number, although nearly triple the longterm average (1991-2020) of 100.7 mm, still falls quite short of our record maximum from 1970 when 507.3 mm fell over the month.” 

“In recent history, we need to look back to January 2010 for a higher January rainfall amount, with an accumulation of 386.2 mm,” said the MetOffice. 

“We are expecting more poor weather from recently named Storm Leonardo over Wednesday (4th) and Thursday (5th), but hopefully more settled weather is expected for next week.” 

WARNINGS 

The Gibraltar Government issued two weather warnings on Monday as a result of the incoming weather.  

It said gale-force winds and heavy rain were forecast to hit Gibraltar from Tuesday evening through to Thursday, with conditions similar to those experienced during Storm Kirsten last week and a risk of damage and disruption. 

A weather advisory for gale force winds will be in force from 1am on Wednesday February 4 to 7pm on Thursday February 5.  

A low-pressure system to the north is expected to track westwards during this period, bringing strong southwesterly winds across the Rock. 

Mean wind speeds of 30kt (55 KM/h) are forecast, with frequent storm-force gusts of between 45 and 50kt (83–93 KM/h).  

With wind speeds comparable to those recorded during Storm Kirsten, damage to property is expected and travel may become very difficult. 

These winds will be accompanied by intense rainfall, with a separate weather advisory for heavy rain covering the period from 6pm on Tuesday February 3 to 6pm on Thursday February 5. 

The same low-pressure system is expected to drag weather fronts across Gibraltar, resulting in prolonged periods of rain.  

Forecasters say rainfall rates of 25 mm in six hours are likely over the period, with total accumulations of between 80 and 120 mm. 

The heaviest rain is expected on Wednesday, when in any six-hour period accumulations could reach 25–30 mm.  

Localised flooding is described as highly likely, with the heavy rain set to be coupled with gale force winds.