MUCH-NEEDED rainfall is on its way to Spain, with tomorrow (Saturday) expected to bring an Atlantic front with showers across the whole of the mainland lasting until at least Tuesday.
With the national drought reaching crisis proportions and reservoirs down to 36.5% of their capacity, the rain is long overdue and will be very welcome, although considerably more will be needed to take Spain's water supply off the critical list by next summer.
Showers will start in Galicia, Cantabria, the Ebro delta, the Pyrénées, the southern Aragonese mountains, Castilla y León and central Spain, then by Monday it will have spread to the rest of the mainland, the Balearic Islands and the city-province of Melilla on the northern African coast directly due south of Almería.
Sunday will bring locally-heavy downpours in Galicia and snow at high altitudes, above 600 metres, in the north.
By Tuesday, the rain may even reach as far south as the Canary Islands, currently one of Spain's driest regions.
More rain is expected in the far north on Wednesday, although may not extend beyond this, other than isolated showers on Friday on the Atlantic coasts, the Strait of Gibraltar and the Balearic Islands.
Atlantic areas could also see high winds.
The State meteorological agency, AEMET, says rainfall was good news in the last week, up to and including Tuesday, December 5, with all bar eastern Aragón and the western parts of Catalunya, Andalucía and Extremadura getting at least a few drops, and up to three centimetres of rain on the northern coastal strip from Asturias to Navarra, parts of the Balearics and the provinces of Cádiz, Málaga and Granada.
Rainfall briefly reached monsoon conditions, at 10 centimetres, in inland parts of the Basque Country and in Cantabria.
But AEMET warns that total rainfall over October, November and the first week in December, at 7.3 centimetres, is around 57% less than the normal volume for the time of year.
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