Canary Islands under orange wind warning on Wednesday

Across all the Canary Islands, the Spanish Meteorological Agency AEMET has issued an orange alert for gusts of wind on Wednesday. On La Palma, the orange wind warning is already in force from 6 pm on Tuesday, and on Wednesday an orange warning for heavy rain will be in place there from 3 am to 5.59 pm. For all warnings, the AEMET estimates a 40 to 70 per cent probability that the forecast conditions will occur.

Three hours after La Palma, i.e. on Tuesday at 9.00 pm, El Hierro, La Gomera and Tenerife will follow. On Tenerife, the warning applies to the north as well as the east, south and west of the island. Meteorologists are forecasting gusts of up to 110 kilometres per hour for Tenerife and La Palma, and up to 100 for El Hierro and La Gomera. Initially, on Tuesday evening, it will be mainly the higher ground that bears the brunt of the wind. On Tenerife, this will then also include the coasts in the far west and on the south-eastern slope; on La Palma, the north-western coast; and on the peaks of both islands, the gusts may exceed 110 kilometres per hour. For El Hierro and La Gomera, the AEMET has identified not only the higher ground but also the coasts at the eastern and western ends of the islands.

This means that an Orange alert is now back in force on El Hierro and La Gomera, after the Met Office had downgraded the warning there to Yellow on Sunday. The Orange alert subsequently remained in place only for the whole of La Palma and the north of Tenerife under Storm Bruna, where the wind warning had been in force since 9.00 pm on Saturday. Once again, a low-pressure system has been given its own name, following Storm Francis in the Canary Islands. On Wednesday, the orange alert will also extend to Gran Canaria, Fuerteventura and Lanzarote.

Canary Islands: Wind gusts are reaching speeds of over 120 kilometres per hour in some areas

An orange alert is in place on La Palma, Tenerife, El Hierro and La Gomera until 5.59 pm on Wednesday. As the day progresses, the affected area will expand: on La Palma and Tenerife, the storm will then sweep across large parts of the mid-altitude areas, the peaks and the coasts on the north-west and south-east-facing slopes, with gusts of over 120 kilometres per hour possible in all these areas. On El Hierro and La Gomera, the wind will affect the mid-altitude areas, the peaks and the coasts in the north-north-west and south-south-east. In the greater Santa Cruz and La Laguna areas, a yellow alert is in force from 12 noon until 8.59 pm, with gusts of up to 70 kilometres per hour, particularly at mid and high altitudes.

Gran Canaria is under an orange alert throughout Wednesday, from midnight to midnight. The AEMET is forecasting gusts of up to 100 kilometres per hour there, particularly at medium altitudes and along long stretches of coastline in the north-west and south-east, with gusts possibly exceeding 110 kilometres per hour on the mountain peaks. On Fuerteventura and Lanzarote, the orange warning is in force from 6.00 am to 8.59 pm. There, gusts will reach up to 90 kilometres per hour across the entire islands, but particularly on the northern and north-western slopes.

La Palma: Heavy rain brings up to 100 millimetres

The Met Office is forecasting the heaviest rain for La Palma, with up to 30 millimetres in an hour and up to 100 millimetres in twelve hours. For El Hierro, La Gomera and the north, east, south and west of Tenerife, a yellow rain warning is in place from 3 am to 8.59 pm, with up to 80 millimetres in twelve hours and up to 20 millimetres per hour. In the Santa Cruz and La Laguna areas, the rain will begin at 9.00 am, with up to 20 millimetres per hour. For Gran Canaria, the AEMET forecasts up to 15 millimetres per hour and 60 millimetres in twelve hours from 9.00 am until midnight, whilst Fuerteventura and Lanzarote are under a yellow warning from 3.00 pm until midnight, with up to 15 millimetres per hour.

In addition, a yellow warning for rough seas is in force along the coasts of all the islands on Wednesday. South-westerly winds of 50 to 61 kilometres per hour are expected, corresponding to wind force 7, and off La Palma there will also be combined swells from the west of 4 metres. From midnight, the warning will be in force on the east and west coasts of La Palma and on the north coast of Gran Canaria until 17.59, and on the coasts in the Santa Cruz and La Laguna areas, as well as in the east, south and west of Tenerife, until 20.59. From 9.00 am, the warning will apply to La Gomera and the north coast of Tenerife until 5.59 pm, and to El Hierro until 2.59 pm. From 12 noon until 8.59 pm, the east, south and west of Gran Canaria, as well as the coasts of Fuerteventura and Lanzarote, will also be affected.

Heavy rain and thunderstorms in the mountainous regions of La Palma and Gran Canaria can trigger flash floods. The water collects in the ravines, known as ‚barrancos‘, and flows through them down to the sea, which is why extra caution is advised in and around the ravine beds.