Europe reels from deadly weather as floods, fires grip France and Spain; Italy braces for more rain

Severe weather struck parts of Europe over the weekend into Monday, delivering floods, landslides and wildfires that disrupted travel, forced closures and left at least a dozen people dead or missing. In France, a 55-year-old woman was found dead in her car in the Ploumagoar commune as floodwaters swept through the Brittany region, according to the Côtes-d'Armor prefecture. The broader department remained under orange alert as rainfall in Plouha exceeded 150 millimeters from Sunday afternoon into Monday morning. Across the country, officials described widespread travel disruption and emergency responses as a Mediterranean storm lingered over the Mediterranean coast.

In the Marseille area, the Bouches-du-Rhône department was placed on yellow alert for rain and floods as the storm tracked across southern France. In Paris and northern Brittany, emergency services reported thousands of calls and hundreds of flood-related incidents in the hours after the downpour. By Sunday evening, authorities in Avignon, Carpentras and Sarrians reported thousands of households without power, and firefighters in the region had responded to hundreds of calls as the storm intensified. A Ligue 1 football match between Olympique de Marseille and Paris Saint-Germain was postponed due to the weather, and in Rognac, authorities announced that all schools would be closed on Monday following floods.

In Spain, Catalonia faced heavy rainfall, flooding and a landslide linked to a wide weather system that also produced dangerous conditions in other parts of the country. Firefighters recovered a body in a river in Sant Pere de Riudebitlles while searching for two people whose car was reportedly swept away during floods. The Montserrat Monastery area saw 27 people rescued after a landslide trapped them on a funicular. Commuter rail service around Barcelona was temporarily halted on several routes, and local authorities logged substantial rainfall in a short period, with the Sant Dimes station recording 115 millimeters. National weather agency AEMET reported downpours with rainfall intensities of up to 40 liters per square meter in 30 minutes in parts of Catalonia. Dozens of flights to and from Barcelona’s airport were delayed or canceled, complicating travel for residents and visitors alike. Across the region, authorities noted the storm submerged roads and prompted evacuations as floodwaters inundated streets and lower-lying neighborhoods. The disruptions followed a season of wildfires in Spain and neighboring Portugal, where tens of thousands of hectares had burned in recent months.

The storm also strained health, transit and emergency systems in other parts of southern France and northern Spain, with authorities reporting ongoing risks as rainfall remained steady and thunderstorms threatened to continue into the evening. In the Provence region, authorities warned of continuing flood risks and urged residents to limit travel where possible as the system lingered over the Mediterranean coast.

Italy braced for further deluges in the north as orange alerts were issued for Lombardy and Liguria. The Seveso River was reported to be flooding in the Milan metropolitan area as rain fell in the early hours of Monday. Local Civil Protection officials in Milan said 30 millimeters of rain had already fallen overnight, with higher totals in some northern towns such as Seveso and along the eastern shores of Lake Como. Firefighters were dispatched in multiple provinces, including Como, Monza and Varese, to respond to landslides and street flooding. Authorities advised residents to avoid underground spaces and elevators and to limit mobile phone use to keep networks clear during peak demand. In Turate, an underpass was flooded and motorists were rescued as part of the day’s weather-related incidents. In Liguria, schools were closed as orange alerts covered much of the region and trains were diverted or halted on several routes as authorities warned of continued instability through the day.

In Galicia, northwest Spain, two large wildfires burned on Saturday, stretched by dry conditions and shifting winds, requiring support from the military as firefighters sought to contain the blazes. Local officials said a number of evacuations were carried out, with residents moved to safer areas as crews battled the fires with ground and air support. The broader summer fire season in Spain and neighboring Portugal has already burned hundreds of thousands of hectares this year, underscoring a growing pattern of climate-driven extremes that authorities say are likely to persist.

The weekend and early Monday events come amid a broader climate pattern that scientists say increases the risk and intensity of extreme rainfall and related hazards. Warmer air holds more moisture, leading to heavier downpours once storms form, a dynamic that has intensified flooding in parts of Europe in recent years. Last October, devastating floods in the eastern Valencian community killed hundreds and caused widespread destruction, underscoring the human and economic toll of such events. Experts caution that even in periods of normal weather, climate-driven extremes can overwhelm infrastructure and response systems, especially in densely populated or highly urbanized basins.

Authorities continued to monitor weather conditions as the storm system moved slowly toward the inland areas of southern France and northern Spain, with meteorologists warning that additional heavy rainfall, flash flooding and landslides could occur. Officials urged residents to heed warnings, secure outdoor belongings and avoid travel unless necessary as the pattern of heavy rain and heat persists across the region. Local transit agencies and emergency services prepared for a prolonged response, with crews coordinating across regional lines to address power outages, flooded roadways and compromised transport routes. As Europe confronts these ongoing threats, officials stressed the need for resilient infrastructure, improved early warning systems and regional cooperation to mitigate the consequences of increasingly frequent climate-driven extremes.