Storm Claudia Brings More Flooding to the Portuguese nation and the Spanish territory
The Iberian nations are again dealing with the consequences of widespread flooding in the wake of Tempest Claudia unleashed torrential downpours and powerful gusts over the past seven days.
The Storm's Origin and Path
This weather system originated from a low-pressure zone that had earlier driven unseasonably early freezing temperatures and snowfall through the eastern sectors of Canada and the American north-east in early November.
The system moved eastward across the Atlantic Ocean over the second weekend of November before slowing and stalling to the north-west of the Iberian peninsula, snared in a dip of an increasingly amplified jet stream.
Effects in Iberia
Spain's Galicia area in the northwest was initially impacted, with 80-150mm of rain pouring down along its Atlantic coast in just one full day up to Wednesday night as a slow-moving band of rain pushed across the western areas of the peninsula.
Additional rainfall and electrical storms on Thursday last week caused inundations to parts of Portugal where a senior pair died in the capital Lisbon after floodwaters from the swollen Tagus entered their home as they rested.
Tempestuous weather lasted through the weekend, with a violent whirlwind ripping through a campsite and a nearby hotel in Albufeira in Portugal's south on the weekend's Saturday, claiming the life of an 85-year-old British woman and injuring 28 people.
Wider Effects across Europe
This system triggered broader repercussions across Europe's western part. By pulling tropical air from the subtropics, the system assisted in raising temperatures in south-west France to nearly 30 degrees Celsius, the nation's all-time high late autumn reading.
By Friday, this warm and humid air mass clashed with a frigid air system across more northern parts of the continent, creating a rainfall belt extending from Ireland's west to Russia.
In the UK, this halting system of rain delivered very high rainfall totals, resulting in severe flooding in the Welsh region.
As Claudia progressively weakens in the coming days, the cold air mass will advance southward, providing the continent its first taste of the winter season.
Related Incidents in the state of California
The Golden State encountered an "atmospheric river" the previous week, causing heavy rain and high-velocity gusts that resulted in flash flooding and mudslides in zones affected by forest fires previously in the year.
In excess of 50 millimetres of rain poured down in southern California on Friday, with a additional two inches broadly over the state on Saturday last.
More than 100mm of rain accumulated over shoreline regions of the state's south in total, attaining a full 200 millimetres in areas of elevated terrain.
An atmospheric river is a concentrated stream of hot, humid air coming from the tropics or subtropics.
Regions previously burned including Palisades and the town of Altadena experienced the most severe the rapid inundations and landslides, leading to evacuations.
In other parts of the state, a man in his seventies passed away after his vehicle was washed off a submerged bridge, and a young girl aged seven and her father were dragged into the Pacific by large waves on the Central Coast.