Date Published: 24/03/2020
ARCHIVED - 100 mm of rain falls close to Cartagena overnight
ARCHIVED ARTICLE
Over 100 millimetres of rain recorded in Cartagena in 24 hours
Torrential rain hammered down on much of central and coastal Murcia on Monday night, and along the inland coast of the Mar Menor there was inevitable concern as floodwater began to gather in the streets following three previous episodes of flooding in the last seven and a half months.
As of 7.00 on Tuesday morning both the Aemet meteorological agency and the CHS water infrastructures administration body reported localized rainfall of over 100 millimetres in the previous 24 hours, the heaviest downpours being located close to the city of Cartagena. Measurements of well over 50 mm were taken in towns such as Torre Pacheco, close to the Mar Menor in the Campo de Cartagena, and in the area around the city of Murcia, as well as close to Mazarrón and Alhama de Murcia, and with more rain forecast on Tuesday (orange and yellow alerts are in place in much of the Region) the remainder of the day is likely to see floodwater making many roads impassable.
By first thing in the morning the roads belonging to the regional network which had been closed to traffic included the RM-F19 motorway between Murcia and San Javier (on the stretch between the coast and Gea y Truyols) as well as almost a dozen others connecting towns such as Balsicas, Torre Pacheco, Los Alcázares, San Javier, Avileses, Pozo Aledo, La Puebla and San Pedro del Pinatar. Fortunately, due to the coronavirus emergency the number of people inconvenienced by the flooding is less than it might otherwise have been!
More worrying, though, are the images posted on Twitter by the SEM organization in Los Alcázares, showing that for the fourth time since September workers are busy clearing drains in an effort to keep the streets clear of floodwater. As of Tuesday morning the situation is not comparable to the disastrous flooding during the “gota fría” storm in September, described by many as the most destructive to affect Murcia in half a century, but the latest rainfall highlights the vulnerability of Los Alcázares and other low-lying towns in the area during times of heavy rain.
Businesses and residents are naturally concerned about the ongoing bad publicity these continual flooding incidents create for the areas affected, and of course, the tourism sector is in a real panic about the potential knock-on effects of the combined coroavirus crisis and the problems facing the Mar Menor this year. All we can hope for in reality, is that once the coronacrisis is over, that the first thing most of us will want to do is have a holiday and get over a month in lockdown!
Unfortunately, with the water level rising in the “rambla” runoff channels leading to the Mar Menor, there is a chance that the situation could worsen considerably during Tuesday before the weather begins to clear slightly on Wednesday.
Sorry!
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