Yellow warnings activated in four Andalusian provinces for heavy rain, storms and hail

Spain's state weather agency (Aemet) has activated yellow warnings for heavy rainfall in the Andalusian provinces of Cordoba, Huelva and Seville from 12 noon this Thursday (4 January) until the end of the day. In addition to these provinces, Cadiz will be placed on alert from 6pm..

According to information published by Aemet, the alerts for heavy rain will be active in the Sierra and Pedroches (Cordoba), the Aracena area of Huelva and the Sierra Norte de Sevilla. The yellow warning will also affect the coast of Cadiz, the interior of the province - including the Grazalema area - and the Strait of Gibraltar. In the four provinces, up to 15mm of rain is expected in one hour and rainfall may occasionally be accompanied by thunderstorms and small hail, according to the state agency's forecast.

Looking ahead to Friday, the day of the Three Kings parades, the warnings will remain at yellow level, but this time for coastal phenomena (in Almeria and Granada provinces) and for frost in Jaén. In the first two, the forecast is for westerly winds of 50 to 60 km/h (force 7) and waves of 3 metres. In Cazorla and Segura the accumulation of snow in 24 hours could be 5 cm. The snow level will drop to 900 metres by the end of the day and the main coverage is expected to be above 1200 metres.

Minimum temperatures will remain unchanged in the southwest of the Andalucia region and will rise in the rest, with isolated frosts in the eastern inland areas. Maximum temperatures will be on the rise on the Mediterranean coast and with slight changes in other areas.

Winds will blow moderately westerly on the coast, more intense on the Mediterranean coasts. In the rest of the region, winds are expected to be light and variable, predominantly westerly.