Environment & Climate 3 min read 5h ago · Updated August 25, 2026 at 00:52 UTC

Severe Hailstorm Floods Streets Across Tarragona Province

Catalonia's fire brigade handled 162 emergency call-outs in a single hour on Monday as hailstorms flooded streets across Tarragona province and felled trees.
Emergency number 112 received 373 calls by 19:00, with 70 per cent coming from the Tarragonès comarca; Protección Civil issued flood alerts for Baix Camp and Tarragonès.
Catalan president Salvador Illa warned that the strongest storm cells had entered the Barcelona metropolitan area and urged residents to exercise maximum caution.

A powerful storm system bringing hail, heavy rain, and strong wind gusts struck Tarragona and surrounding areas of Catalonia on Monday afternoon, flooding streets, felling trees, and generating nearly 400 emergency calls within hours — before the storm cells pushed northward towards the Barcelona metropolitan area.

Emergency services overwhelmed in Tarragona

Catalonia's fire brigade, the Bombers de la Generalitat, attended 162 call-outs between 18:30 and 19:30 alone, the overwhelming majority in Tarragona province. Incidents included fallen trees and branches, minor flooding, and sparking electrical cables. By 19:00, the emergency number 112 had received 373 calls, producing 259 separate incident files, with roughly 70 per cent originating in the Tarragonès comarca. Streets in Tarragona city and numerous localities in the Alt Camp were reported to have flooded under the intensity of the downpour, which deposited more than 20 litres per square metre in some areas within just 30 minutes.

Official warnings and rail disruption

Protección Civil issued an alert for accumulations exceeding 60 litres per square metre over three hours in the Baix Camp and Tarragonès areas, a warning that remained in force until 22:00. Authorities also cautioned that until the early hours, rainfall rates could surpass 20 litres per square metre in 30 minutes across much of northern Catalonia, particularly in the Central Catalonia and Girona regions. The Catalan Water Agency issued a hydrological risk notice for Baix Camp, urging the public to stay away from rivers, streams, and ravines. Train services on lines R15, R14, and RT-1 between Mora la Nova and Reus were disrupted but subsequently restored. Spain's coastline has seen a pattern of severe weather events in recent weeks; torrential rains had previously trapped families on the Costa Daurada, not far from the affected area.

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Storms advance towards Barcelona

Catalan president Salvador Illa warned on the social media platform X that storms were "still very intense" in the Camp de Tarragona and were tracking from south to north, with one of the "strongest" cells having entered the Barcelona metropolitan area. He urged the public to exercise "maximum caution", particularly when travelling, to follow the instructions of emergency services, and to avoid parking in flood-prone zones. Despite the scale of the disruption, Imma Solé, deputy director of Protección Civil, told broadcaster 3catinfo that no "serious incident" had been recorded as a result of the storms — though the situation remained fluid as storm cells continued to move north. Hailstorms have caused significant disruption elsewhere in Spain in recent days, underscoring the severity of this summer's convective weather pattern across the Iberian Peninsula.

##Catalonia ##ExtremWeather ##Flooding

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