Severe Weather Hits Portugal: 71 Incidents Reported and 2 Injured Overnight

Heavy Rain Causes Chaos Across Portugal

A warning was issued on Monday regarding the worsening weather conditions in mainland Portugal, expected to last until Wednesday, with heavy rain, accompanied by thunderstorms and hail.

The National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANEPC) reported 71 incidents between midnight and 7 AM on Wednesday due to strong rain and wind, with the majority being flooding, resulting in at least two injuries.

From 8 PM on Tuesday, a total of 180 incidents were recorded across the country linked to the Garoe depression. In the Aveiro district, specifically in Lourosa, at least two individuals were injured due to a wall collapse caused by the torrential rain.

The heavy rain also led to flooded homes, garages, and roads in Aveiro, with additional reports of flooded roads in Valpaços and Leiria. Elísio Pereira from ANEPC stated that most of the overnight incidents (51) were floods. The most affected areas included Algarve with 14 incidents, Setúbal Peninsula with 13, Greater Lisbon with 8, while the remaining incidents were spread across the rest of the country.

Among the reported incidents, extreme wind conditions were noted in the Setúbal Peninsula. Pereira reported a case of extreme wind on National Road 253 between Alcácer do Sal and Comporta, an area without housing, where trees and power lines fell. Traffic has since been restored, and communications companies are assessing the damage to their infrastructure.

On Monday, ANEPC had alerted the population about the deteriorating weather conditions across mainland Portugal, warning of heavy rain, thunderstorms, and hail, as well as urging for preventive measures.

Yellow Warning for Several Districts

The Portuguese Institute of the Sea and Atmosphere (IPMA) has placed the districts of Viana do Castelo, Braga, and Porto under a yellow warning due to expected heavy rain, thunderstorms, and occasional hail until 6 PM on Wednesday.

Aveiro, Viseu, Coimbra, Leiria, Castelo Branco, Santarém, Lisbon, Portalegre, Évora, Setúbal, Beja, and Faro are under yellow warning until midnight Thursday. Due to maritime agitation, the districts of Lisbon, Faro, Setúbal, and Beja are under an orange warning until 9 AM Wednesday, changing to yellow until 3 PM.

The Madeira archipelago is also under a yellow warning until 3 PM Thursday due to sea conditions and until 3 AM Thursday due to occasionally heavy rain. The orange warning is issued by IPMA whenever there is a situation of moderate to high weather risk, and yellow when there is a risk for certain weather-dependent activities.