Large swathes of Cadiz have once again flooded due to the passing of a major Atlantic storm.
Aerial footage from the Policia Nacional shows homes, cars and farmland underwater in Jerez de la Frontera on Wednesday.
Some of the devastating scenes have been caused by the Guadalete River, which has burst its banks for the second time in two weeks.
It comes as Storm Leonardo is unleashing a water bomb of rain across Andalucia, after converging with an ‘atmospheric river’ from the Caribbean overnight.
The Jerez region is under an orange alert from state weather agency Aemet for heavy rain throughout Wednesday.
The neighbouring Grazalema district, meanwhile, is on the highest red alert, meaning there is an ‘extraordinary risk’ to the population.
More than 3,000 residents were forced to leave their homes across Andalucia overnight.
The evacuations took place in the Campo de Gibraltar, Ronda and Jaen as Storm Leonardo battered the region, bringing a severe risk of ‘historic’ flooding.
Footage shared online showed Civil Protection cars with megaphones asking residents to leave their homes to be evacuated.
Eslewhere in Cadiz, the Guardia Civil was filmed announcing, also via megaphones, that a red alert was in place.
The Junta de Andalucia confirmed late on Tuesday that 1,618 people had so far been evacuated as a precaution from the Campo de Gibraltar, including San Roque, Algeciras and Los Barrios.
San Roque most evacuations
The worst-affected municipality is San Roque, where 1,018 residents have been evacuated from several vulnerable areas, including Estacion de San Roque, Guadarranque, San Enrique, parts of the Marlin river area in the Port of Sotogrande, and Calle Transito.
To accommodate displaced families, the Ciudad de San Roque Municipal Pavilion has been opened as an emergency shelter.
The Red Cross said it had prepared beds for residents in San Roque in a post on X.
Other residents have been temporarily rehoused in hotels, are staying with relatives, or – in one case – have been accommodated at the hospital in La Línea de la Concepcion, reports Europa Sur.
Further evacuations in Los Barrios and Algeciras
In Los Barrios, close to 200 people have also had to leave their homes, particularly in Benharas, Ringo Rango, Venta San Isidro and Guadaorte, where the risk of flooding remains high.
Meanwhile, around 400 residents have been evacuated in Algeciras, with some being sheltered at the Ciudad de Algeciras – Juan Carlos Mateo pavilion, as authorities continue to monitor the situation street by street.
Sierra de Cadiz
Further inland, six families have been evacuated in Setenil de las Bodegas, rehoused between a hotel and a nearby campsite.
In Torre Alhaquime, around 25 people have left homes in flood-prone areas, while more than 30 residents have been evacuated from Tavizna, a district of Benaocaz.
