After 'Eowyn', 'Herminia' Arrives in Spain, Bringing Rain and Hurricane-Force Winds

Spain is already feeling the effects of 'Herminia', the eighth major storm of the season to hit the country, following 'Eowyn' in recent hours. This new front will put up to six autonomous communities on alert this Sunday due to rainfall and strong winds. The most affected area will be Galicia, where an orange alert for waves and a red alert for wind have been issued, according to the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet).

This Sunday, south and southwest winds will be felt, gaining strength as the day progresses. There will be very strong gusts in the northern and eastern peninsular regions, even reaching hurricane force, with winds exceeding 120 km/h in some parts of the far north. Special caution is advised in high mountain areas and coastal regions such as capes and very open coastal areas. AEMET estimates that waves could reach between eight and ten metres on the Galician coast.

The Principality of Asturias, Cantabria, Castile and León, and the Chartered Community of Navarre are other areas of the Peninsula where an orange alert for wind has been declared. Although not as strong as on the Galician coast, wind gusts in these areas are expected to reach up to 90 km/h.

In addition to strong winds, 'Herminia' will bring a very active frontal system that will leave cloudy skies and precipitation across much of the Peninsula. In the western Central System, Cantabrian, the Pyrenees, and especially in Galicia, heavy rains are expected, sometimes accompanied by storms, which could accumulate 100/120 litres throughout the day in parts of its western half.

In the rest of the country, precipitation will be light and is not expected to reach the Balearic Islands, where skies will be mostly clear. Snow will appear in the mountains of the northern half, with a snow line between 1,000/1,400 metres rising above 2,000 metres, except in the Pyrenees, where, as in the Cantabrian mountain range, significant snowfall could accumulate.

Regarding temperatures, maximums will rise in Galicia, the Cantabrian region, the Canary Islands, and the interior of the southeastern Peninsula, while they will decrease in the Levante coast and the northeastern third. As for minimum temperatures, they will decrease in much of the eastern third of the Peninsula and in the Balearic Islands.

The most challenging day of this 'superstorm' will be Monday, when strong winds will spread to the rest of the Peninsula, causing significant maritime storms along much of our coasts and rain across almost the entire peninsular territory. Rain will again be abundant in Galicia and throughout the Cantabrian and northwestern regions, as well as in the north of Cáceres and the south of Salamanca and Ávila. Precipitation will also be felt in parts of Western Andalusia and western Castilla-La Mancha.

Tuesday will be very different, with a thermal drop across the country causing precipitation in the far north and mountainous areas of the interior Peninsula, where the drop in temperatures could turn them into snow.