Maximum alert tomorrow due to the worst of the windstorm

The windstorm associated with the powerful Atlantic storm Niles The storm will reach its peak this Thursday. Once the front of showers passes through Wednesday night, the main event of the episode will begin. Strong winds are expected from the early hours of the morning and throughout the day across much of the country, with gusts that could exceed 80 or 100 km/h in many areas, and even 130 or 150 km/h in higher elevations. Meteocat has activated a red alert – the highest possible level – for strong winds in many regions, especially in Barcelona, ​​Central Catalonia, and the Pyrenees, while the rest of Catalonia, the Valencian Community, and the Balearic Islands have yellow and orange alerts for strong gusts, as well as for rough seas.

It had been years since we'd experienced such a strong and widespread windstorm in our area, which will also severely affect regions unaccustomed to these gusts, such as the Barcelona area. Travel with vehicles vulnerable to gusts of wind, such as bicycles, motorcycles, or scooters, should be avoided. Caution should also be exercised with construction scaffolding, and all objects that could fall from balconies and facades should be removed. Avoid forests and wooded areas, as the ground is saturated after so many weeks of rain, and it will be easy for trees and branches to fall. as we explained a few days ago in the ARA.

This Wednesday we already experienced the first part of the storm, especially during the early morning hours, with gusts exceeding 80 or 100 km/h, particularly along the coast and pre-coastal areas of Barcelona and Tarragona. Notable gusts included 140 km/h recorded at Puig Sesolles (at an altitude of 1,668 m in Montseny), 107 km/h at Miami Platja (Baix Camp), 106 km/h at Mas de Barberans (Montsià), 104 km/h at El Perelló (Baix Ebre), 95 km/h at Portbou (Alt Empordà), and 89 km/h at the port of Barcelona.

The worst of the storm will last for several hours, but the wind will gradually subside from the afternoon onwards, and especially at night. However, be aware of the situation in the coming days, as another windstorm is expected between Friday afternoon and especially Saturday, this time with mistral and tramontana winds in the south of the country, in the Empordà region and in the Pyrenees peaks, where it will bring blizzard conditions.

Just waiting for more rain

The windy conditions will be accompanied by sunny and clear skies in most areas this Thursday. Cloud cover will be limited to the Pyrenees and Pre-Pyrenees, with some light showers expected on the northern slopes until midday. The snow level will start very high but will quickly drop to around 1,000 or 1,200 meters.

Temperatures will also drop after the recent spring-like weather, which saw some highs around 25°C in the south of the country. However, it will still be unseasonably mild, with many highs between 15 and 20°C. New fronts are expected in the coming days, bringing more showers and wind.

Friday will bring a radical change in the weather. The strong westerly winds will be over, but a new front will arrive, bringing heavy cloud cover and light rain to practically every region. All this will be accompanied by a significant drop in temperatures, making it feel suddenly wintry after days of unseasonably warm weather.

From the afternoon onwards, the mistral and tramontana winds will intensify in the south of the country, in the Empordà region, and on the peaks of the Pyrenees. These winds will reach their peak on Saturday, with very strong gusts in these areas and blizzard conditions in the Pyrenees. Over Carnival weekend, it will also snow in the Pyrenees at much lower elevations, and temperatures will be normal for this time of year.