Spain experienced a 5.3 magnitude earthquake early today, just hours after parts of the country were hit by flash floods and heavy rain.
The quake struck southern Spain, affecting areas including popular destinations like the Costa del Sol and Alicante. According to Spain’s National Geographic Institute (IGN), it occurred at 7:13am local time off Cabo de Gata on the Almeria coast. Cabo de Gata is the largest protected coastal area in the Andalusia region.
The earthquake’s epicentre was located around 19 miles offshore at a depth of nearly two miles below sea level. Tremors were felt in hundreds of towns and villages across seven provinces in Andalusia and the Levante region, the IGN and local reports confirmed.
IGN data, updated at 11am UTC, showed that 18 aftershocks had been recorded so far. The strongest came just five minutes after the initial quake.
In Almeria, an airport roof partially collapsed and a car showroom sustained damage.
An airport worker said: “We heard some noises one after the other and then a loud bang and a great cloud of dust appeared. It was a real scare for us. There were airport workers having their first coffee of the day but luckily no one was injured.”
Local reports say Granada, Malaga, and Jaen in the south, and Murcia, Alicante, and Albacete in the east, were among the areas most affected.
In Huércal de Almeria, a Toyota showroom was damaged, with images showing a collapsed ceiling that had been cordoned off.
The earthquake followed severe weather yesterday, when heavy rain caused widespread disruption across parts of northeastern Spain.
Spain’s weather agency AEMET issued storm warnings for several regions, including Huesca, Teruel, Zaragoza, Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, Tarragona, and Castellón.
In Catalonia, 71 patients were evacuated from Penedès Regional Hospital after flooding turned streets into rivers. In the town of Cubelles, about 30 miles from Barcelona, a witness said a woman and child were swept away by floodwater after falling into the swollen Foix River.
