🔗 Share this article

As tempests and hurricanes have swirled in the Atlantic Ocean and Pacific east, the continent has experienced extreme conditions of its own. An atmospheric depression that formed over the Mediterranean in the middle of the week drifted north-east into south-eastern European countries on Thursday morning, producing widespread rain showers, thunderstorms and lengthy rainfall.

Continuing Rainfall and Serious Alerts

The system is forecast to continue into Friday, with forecasting tools showing 48-hour amounts of three to five inches of precipitation across much of the Balkans. Severe weather alerts were activated for Serbia, southwestern Romania, northeastern Greece, and the Greek isles, highlighting the risk of inundation and threat to life. High winds also closed educational institutions on the island of Zakynthos in the Ionian Islands.

Cold Air Adds Severe Conditions

Frigid temperatures drawn in from eastern Europe added to the seriousness, causing deep snow across the Dinaric mountain range, with several predictions estimating snow levels of nearly three feet by the weekend's end.

Earlier Flooding in Spanish Regions

Just days before, Spain's eastern coast and the Balearic Islands endured serious flooding as the remnants of Tropical Storm Gabrielle moved across the Iberian peninsula before coming to a halt over the Balearic waters. The city of Valencia and the island of Ibiza were hardest hit; Gandia recorded over 350 millimeters in 12 hours – more than 10 times its typical September rainfall, while Ibiza had 10 inches in one day, its rainiest day since at least 1952.

Highways, railway stations, green spaces, and school buildings were forced to close, while one gauge near Aldaia recorded over two inches in just 35 minutes, causing the La Saleta waterway to overflow. The floods come almost a year after devastating inundations in Valencia in 2024 that killed more than 230 people.

Typhoon Bualoi Impacts Vietnamese Regions

Typhoon Bualoi made landfall across Vietnam's central region this week, bringing heavy rain, strong winds, and massive ocean waves. In excess of 12 inches of rain was recorded within a 24-hour span on Monday morning, causing rapid flooding and mudslides that blocked over 3,000 highways and stranded local populations across the northern regions. Many airplane journeys were disrupted or postponed, and rail transport between Hanoi and the southern metropolis were halted.

Officials confirmed 36 fatalities and 147 people injured, with 21 people still unaccounted for. More than 210,000 houses were impacted or inundated, with in excess of 126,000 acres of farmland wiped out. National officials has estimated that the typhoon has caused over $350 million in damage to property this past week.