An intense hailstorm hits three municipalities in Navarra

A Foral Police agent collaborates in response to the problems caused by the heavy hail that fell on the riverside towns of Fitero, Corella and Cintruénigo (Navarra), early this Sunday. Navarra Foral Police

Several towns in the Navarrese Ribera suffered an episode of intense rain and hail during the early hours of Sunday that turned the streets white and caused numerous incidents. Emergency and civil protection services are making an initial estimate of the damage, but do not yet have concrete data. Among the most affected municipalities are Fitero, Corella and Cintruénigo. In some points, it was even necessary to use excavators to clean the streets, which were greatly affected by the strong runoff recorded, according to the Foral Police.

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The rainfall did not limit the Ribera. In the town of Irurtzun, in the Pamplona region, 30 liters per square meter were reached in just one hour, while in Tierra Estella it exceeded 60. These strong storms added to the rainfall recorded on the night of Friday to Saturday, especially in the Pamplona Basin, where “more than half of all autumn precipitation” has fallen, according to the Aemet.

The general director of Civil Protection and Emergencies, José Javier Boulandier, explained that at night the pre-emergency alerts went off in some rain gauges, but that it was at three in the morning when the orange warning was activated “due to observed phenomena and not due to prediction.” ”. In Fitero, one of the most affected towns and which is celebrating its patron saint festivities, at least one person was taken to the hospital after suffering the impact of the hail. The mayor of the town, Miguel Aguirre, told this newspaper that the storm started out dry, with hail, and that “it was able to handle everything.” The damage on the street is palpable, with cars with broken windows or dents. Farmers from the town have already told the council that they have lost practically everything.

Good morning, the storms continue and will continue ⛈️ these days. Video and photo from tonight in Corella where they were affected by a supercell that left hail and 36 liters accumulated. In Tierra Estella, Estella accumulated 61 liters and in Andia/Urbasa 66 liters in Goñi and 50 liters in Leizego. pic.twitter.com/G6ahs93sMl

— Meteo Navarra (@Meteonavarra_) September 10, 2023

In Cintruénigo, also during celebrations, numerous damages were also recorded. Its mayor, Óscar Bea, has described in SER that “it has been truly outrageous.” The hail was “too heavy and was accumulating,” which is why considerable damage to crops is estimated: “There are fields that have been destroyed: grapes, almonds, olives… We will have to assess the damage throughout this week.” . Also on the roofs of the urban area, where we assume that we have quite a few broken tiles and quite a bit of damage, but until we go up and check, we will not know the extent. At street level, there is broken glass, dented cars, fallen trees, piles of dead birds. “A real disaster.”

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The images and videos spread on social networks are striking, especially those recorded in the municipality of Corella. In the town, the storm broke out around three in the morning and the emergency services received around 40 phone calls reporting various incidents. The mayor of the municipality, Gorka García, has detailed that several “flooded garages, fallen trees and raised sewers” ​​have been observed. García has acknowledged that the council has been “overwhelmed by the magnitude of the storm”, since this amount of water and hail had never been seen in Corella.

The State Meteorological Agency (AEMET) activated the yellow alert this Sunday due to accumulated rainfall and storms in the Ribera de Navarra – 15 liters per square meter are expected in one hour. The storms may be accompanied by hail and very strong gusts of wind. It is expected that on Monday, the UPN parliamentary group will present an institutional declaration requesting that the municipalities of Fitero, Cintruénigo and Corella be declared a catastrophic area.

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