Catalonia lifts travel restrictions in five counties as storm threat eases

The Catalan government has lifted travel restrictions and the suspension of non-urgent healthcare activities in the five counties where the measures were imposed amid forecasts of severe storms: Alt Penedès, Baix Penedès, Garraf, Baix Llobregat and Vallès Occidental.

Civil Protection said the remaining restrictions, including the closure of schools and universities, would remain in place until 5pm, when the measures approved on Tuesday expire.

An emergency alert was sent to mobile phones to inform residents in the affected counties of the changes around 1.30pm on Wedesday.

Civil Protection defends storm restrictions

Imma Solé, deputy director of Civil Protection, defended the restrictions announced on Tuesday, citing the "high probability" of heavy rain on Wednesday.

Solé said the decision to issue an ES-Alert and suspend activities was based on the weather forecast.

She said alerts are issued according to technical criteria and as early as possible so people have time to make arrangements.

At the same time, Solé acknowledged "limitations" in the certainty of such decisions.

Santi Segalà, head of the Forecasting Department at Meteocat, said the weather forecast had been "fully justified."

Segalà also acknowledged that the tools used by forecasters, and the decisions based on them, involve an element of "probability" and "uncertainty."

Climate change adds another layer of complexity, he said. "More and more, these kinds of disturbances arrive at times when they shouldn't, or storms end up developing in more unexpected ways," he said.

As a result, weather models sometimes struggle to accurately predict the precise location, timing and intensity of storms, he said.

High-speed train services resume

High-speed train services between Barcelona and Madrid resumed at 12.48pm after repairs were completed on an overhead line damaged by lightning, rail infrastructure operator Adif said.

Services were suspended at 11am for an expected two-hour period.

The lightning had forced trains to run on a single track between El Prat de Llobregat and Gelida, causing delays of up to one hour.

Technicians decided to suspend services to carry out the repairs and prevent further delays from building up. 

According to data from the Spanish transport ministry, the disruption on the high-speed corridor between Madrid and Barcelona had affected 21 trains by 11am, involving nearly 7,000 passengers.

Average delays were 35 minutes, although some trains were delayed by as much as an hour.

30 flights cancelled 

Operations at Barcelona-El Prat Airport gradually recovered throughout Wednesday after storms hit the area early in the morning. Of the 1,036 flights scheduled for Wednesday, around 30 were cancelled due to the weather, while two flights were diverted to Madrid.

According to airport operator Aena, air navigation service provider ENAIRE regulated traffic throughout the morning to maintain the necessary separation between aircraft and ensure flight safety. 

Rail delays

Rodalies R2 South and southern regional services were running around 30 minutes late on Wednesday morning because of speed restrictions imposed due to "adverse weather conditions" and a separate incident, according to Renfe.

The incident was caused by cable theft between Reus and Vila-seca, Renfe said. The affected lines were the R2, R13, R14, R15, R16, R17, RT1 and RT2.

On the R2 South, trains were running at a frequency of two per hour in each direction between Sant Vicenç de Calders and França station.

Meanwhile, trains on the R4 and R8 lines were running on a single track between Castellbisbal and Martorell because of a separate infrastructure incident. Delays on those services may exceed 20 minutes, according to Renfe.

Schools closed in five counties

Authorities in Catalonia initially restricted travel in five counties on Wednesday as heavy rain and storms were forecast to hit the region.

The measures, originally in force from 7am to 5pm, applied to Alt Penedès, Baix Penedès, Baix Llobregat, Vallès Occidental and Garraf. People were urged to avoid unnecessary travel and work from home where possible.

The Catalan government also suspended classes at schools, universities and other educational centres, and postponed non-urgent healthcare activity.

The measures also applied to day centres for older people and people with disabilities. Residents were warned of the restrictions through an emergency alert sent to mobile phones on Tuesday evening.