The national meteorological institute (IPMA) is forecasting a prolonged period of rain this week across mainland Portugal, with the heaviest impact expected in the north and centre, areas already affected by severe weather in recent days.
“We are expecting a prolonged period of rainfall starting on Sunday,” said IPMA meteorologist Nuno Lopes at a press briefing held at the headquarters of the National Emergency and Civil Protection Authority (ANEPC) in Carnaxide, in the Lisbon region.
According to Lopes, from today onwards, precipitation is forecast every day across almost the entire country. The north and centre are expected to be most affected, “areas where there has already been significant rainfall over the past few days”.
Forecasts indicate that accumulated rainfall in northern Portugal could exceed 160 millimetres over the course of the week. The south will also be affected, although to a lesser extent.
According to Correio da Manhã, reporting on recent weather models forecast, Portugal is now facing a “carousel of bad weather”, after a so-called “train” of depressions (“Goretti”, “Ingrid”, “Joseph” and “Kristin”). The new depression sweeping across the Atlantic Ocean, writes CM, is expected to enter Greater Lisbon in the early hours of Monday, bringing heavy rainfall.
IPMA is also predicting rough seas – 10 districts in mainland Portugal are under orange alert, the second highest level, between Monday and Wednesday due to rough seas – along with snowfall at higher altitudes and occasional strong winds.
Civil Protection has been warning of a high risk of flooding along the Douro, Águeda, Mondego and Tagus rivers, with particular attention to Sunday night due to the combination of heavy rain and high tides.
Alcácer do Sal (Setúbal district) has been flooded since Wednesday, while the Mondego River further north has already overflowed its banks, flooding fields and closing roads, and Coimbra is preparing preventive evacuation plans.
In the Algarve, the Arade River burst its banks last Wednesday, flooding parts of Silves, which led to the declaration of a “situation of municipal alert“.
The warning follows the passage of Storm Kristin through mainland Portugal in the early hours of last Wednesday, which left eight people dead, and several people displaced.
The initial official death toll of six was revised to eight after two men died yesterday (Saturday), in separate incidents, while repairing roofs following the damage caused by the storm. The first death was recorded in Batalha, when a 73-year-old man died after falling from a roof he was repairing, the GNR confirmed; the second fatality was a man in his sixties who died in Bárrio, Alcobaça, while repairing a roof on a livestock farm. The GNR advise caution and urge that any repair work be handled by qualified professionals.
Storm Kristin caused widespread disruption, including fallen trees and structures, road closures, interruptions to transport services — particularly rail — school closures, and power, water and communications outages. The districts of Leiria, where the storm first made landfall, Coimbra and Santarém were among the worst affected.
The government is meeting today in an extraordinary Council of Ministers to analyse the disaster situation and define preventive measures for the coming days, as well as the recovery of the regions affected by Storm Kristin. The Prime Minister will make a statement after the meeting, which started at 10am.
