The Balearic government does not expect the rain forecast for Wednesday in the Balearics to cause flooding, but has warned that the storms will be accompanied by electrical activity, with lightning that could cause fires. This was explained this morning by the Director General of Emergencies and the Interior, Pablo Gárriz, after participating in the meeting of the Technical Advisory Committee, which includes representatives from all the emergency services and security forces of the region, as well as other organisations.
According to forecasts by the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet), the next few hours will be unstable and the first critical moment of the day will be between 12 noon and 6 p.m. A cold front is expected to collide with warm air masses, causing severe storms with rainfall of up to 50 litres per square metre, which may be accompanied by electrical storms and possible hailstorms, as well as a slight drop in temperatures.
The forecast is that the storms will mainly affect the area of the channel between Ibiza and Mallorca and will move towards the south and east of Mallorca in the coming hours, with winds that could reach gusts of up to 80 kilometres per hour. Menorca is expected to be affected from early this morning and on Thursday.
‘At the moment, the main concern is the electrical activity, as we have had weeks of high temperatures and the ground is dry, so lightning could easily cause a fire, as happened yesterday in Ibiza,’ warned Gárriz. However, the director general pointed out that the storms do not appear to be likely to cause flooding, as the forecast is that, although they will be heavy, they will not last for more than an hour. The cleaning carried out in the torrents, he explained, helps to prevent the risk.
Even so, Gárriz has called on citizens to act responsibly and follow the self-protection advice issued by Emergencias 112. The Government has maintained an orange alert (Severity Index 1) under the Special Plan for Adverse Weather Conditions (Meteobal) due to the forecast of rain and storms in Mallorca and Menorca, and a yellow alert (Severity Index 0) for rain and storms in Ibiza and Formentera.
The Directorate-General for Emergencies and the Interior is continuously monitoring the weather situation, together with AEMET, which is issuing information bulletins and warnings corresponding to these forecasts. Depending on how the situation develops, the Technical Advisory Committee may be convened again this afternoon.