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While cyclones and hurricanes have raged in the Atlantic Ocean and eastern Pacific, Europe has faced extreme conditions of its own. A low-pressure system that emerged over the Mediterranean Sea in the middle of the week drifted towards the northeast into south-eastern European countries on Thursday morning, causing widespread downpours, electrical storms and lengthy rains.

Ongoing Precipitation and Serious Warnings

The low-pressure area is forecast to continue into Friday and beyond, with weather models indicating 48-hour period amounts of three to five inches of precipitation across the majority of the Balkan Peninsula. Highest-level advisories were issued for Serbia, southwestern Romania, north-east Greece, and the Aegean island groups, underscoring the threat of flooding and risk to human safety. High winds also forced the closure of classes on Zakynthos in the Ionian Islands.

Chilly Air Intensifies Harshness

Chilly air masses brought in from eastern Europe worsened the intensity, generating deep snow across the Dinaric mountain range, with some models forecasting accumulations of up to 80cm by the weekend.

Previous Floods in Spanish Regions

Previously, the eastern part of Spain and the Balearic Islands suffered severe floods as the remains of Hurricane Gabrielle moved across the Spanish peninsula before coming to a halt over the nearby sea. The city of Valencia and the island of Ibiza were most impacted; The town of Gandia registered over 350 millimeters in a 12-hour period – more than 10 times its September average, while Ibiza had 254 millimeters in 24 hours, its wettest day since at least 1952.

Roads, train stations, public parks, and educational facilities were compelled to shut down, while one gauge near Aldaia registered 57 millimeters in just 35 minutes, leading to the local ravine to burst its banks. The floods come almost a year after catastrophic flooding in Valencia in 2024 that claimed the lives of hundreds of residents.

Tropical Cyclone Bualoi Hits Vietnamese Regions

The powerful typhoon made landfall across central Vietnam this week, delivering heavy rain, strong winds, and massive ocean waves. In excess of 12 inches of rainfall was recorded within a 24-hour span on Monday, leading to rapid flooding and rock slides that blocked over 3,000 highways and cut off villages across northern provinces. Many airplane journeys were disrupted or postponed, and rail transport between Hanoi and the southern metropolis were stopped.

Authorities reported 36 lives lost and 147 injuries, with 21 individuals still unaccounted for. More than 210,000 houses were damaged or flooded, with over 51,000 hectares of farmland wiped out. Vietnam’s government has estimated that the storm has caused in excess of £260 million in economic losses this recent period.