MADRID – Madrid was hit by heavy rainfall in the early hours of this morning, leading to flooding in several places of the capital and the surrounding region. The severe weather also caused problems on important roads such as the M-111 and the M-100.
The fire brigade had to respond several times to rescue people whose vehicles became stuck in the water, reports the emergency service 112. Until 8.00 am, the service had handled 343 reports.
The most affected areas were as follows;
- Soto del Real
- Manzanares del Real
- Colmenar Viejo
- Central Madrid
- The Corredor del Henares region
There were reports of flooded garages and cellars, especially in Soto del Real. In Madrid and the Henares region, several streets were flooded, especially on the M-100, where the fire brigade had to carry out a number of rescue operations.
Eyewitness accounts
A woman who was near Algete at the time of the floods said: “The road had turned into a river. The fire brigade had to rescue the drivers and at the moment there are still about 6 or 7 cars in the middle of the road.” The La Garena train station in Alcalá de Henares is also completely flooded.
Fire brigade interventions and material damage
Moreover, the Comunidad de Madrid fire brigade had already carried out approximately 120 interventions by 8.00 am. One of the incidents involved a fallen tree on Pío XII street, which crushed a traffic light and a bus shelter. Around 50 interventions were carried out between 5.00 am and 8.00 am, mainly due to flooding, falling tree branches and damage caused indoors without injuries.
Problems with public transport
Madrid’s metro suffered flooding on lines 7 and 9, with some parts temporarily closed. According to sources, the situation has now normalised. Service was restored on line 7 by 7.30 am, and on line 9 by 8.05 am. Meanwhile, some parts of the M-30 continue to flood.
Also read: Heavy rain and thunder expected in parts of Spain this weekend
