Gota Fria

(backblip)

The day after we arrived from soggy Scotland, Murcia experienced one of its worst ever Gota Fria * I was all for getting back on the plane. Happily it left as quickly as it came! This rambla is normally a dirt bowl. Due to the flash floods the water company diverted storm water down it. A good move? The water was so strong it damaged the bridge which connects the two communities either side of the bridge! It's still being repaired some 3 months later!

*Gota fría, or "cold drop", is a weather phenomenon often occurring in the Spanish autumn. It is experienced particularly along the western Mediterranean and as such, most frequently affects the east coast of Spain (although it is by no means limited to this area).

Gota fría is the name given to the storms. These most commonly take place after the summer months when the sea temperature is still high, but the temperature in upper airstreams suddenly drops. The warm air, saturated with water vapour, rises and cools too quickly when meeting the upper airstreams. The result is extremely intense rainfall, accompanied by high winds (up to 140 km/h), hail and thunderstorms.