Date Published: 21/10/2019
ARCHIVED - Latest on Gota Fría storm alert as Aemet postpone yellow alert until Tuesday
ARCHIVED ARTICLE
Murcia appears likely to be spared the worst of the second Gota Fría in six weeks
The unpredictable nature of the potentially destructive gota fría storms which sometimes arrive during the autumn in the Region of Murcia has been illustrated over the weekend by the difficulties faced by the State meteorological agency Aemet, as they attempt to forecast how the high altitude depression which is currently building along the eastern coast of Spain is likely to develop during the next couple of days.
Initially a yellow alert for potential downpours had been issued for parts of the Region of Murcia for Monday 21st October, but this has now been withdrawn and the worst of the rain is now expected to occur during Tuesday morning. The latest yellow alert is restricted to northern and eastern areas of the Region, with Aemet warning of a 40 to 70 per cent chance of up to 20 millimetres of rain in any given hours between midnight and midday in the Altiplano (the large municipalities of Jumilla and Yecla in the north of Murcia, the Vega del Segura (including the city of Murcia) and the Campo de Cartagena and Mazarrón.
In addition, in central and south-eastern areas the accumulated rainfall during the first half of the day could reach up to 60 millimetres, according to Aemet: a very significant amount of water although far less than fell during the dramatic gota fría of mid-September, and it is to be hope that there will be no repeat of the disastrous flooding which caused such damage and disruption to homes, public property and the marine environment of the Mar Menor.
At the same time, the arrival of the rain also heralds a significant drop in temperatures, as was already the case during Sunday and on Monday morning in most parts of Murcia. Minimums on Monday are expected to fall to just 3 degrees in Yecla, 4 in Caravaca de la Cruz, 6 in Lorca, 9 in Murcia and 14 on the coast in Cartagena, while even the afternoon highs will drop to between 18 and 21, and on Tuesday for the first time in many months it is unlikely that the temperature will reach 20ºC anywhere in the Costa Cálida.
In the meantime, the severest weather associated with this latest gota fría is expected to occur further north on the Mediterranean coast, in Catalunya and the north of the Comunidad Valenciana, where the amount of rain expected to fall by Aemet is up to 40 millimetres in an hour and 100 millimetres in any 12-hour period between midnight on Monday and the early hours of Wednesday.
Once again it is important to stress that the development of gota fría storms is notoriously hard to predict accurately, and although this information is the latest to have been issued by Aemet on Monday morning constant updates and alterations are to be expected: make sure to keep informed of the latest!
Image 2: menacing clouds ovber Los Alcázares on Monday morning (tourist office)
Join the Murcia Weather Watch group on Facebook to keep up to date with all the latest forecasts and weather related stories: https://www.facebook.com/groups/RegionOfMurciaWeatherWatch/.