Barcelona on 'flooding red alert' as airports inundated, 50 flights cancelled: Watch

Barcelona, Spain

The city of Barcelona was hit by severe flooding on Monday (Nov 4) as the officials issued a red alert warning of "extreme danger" amid torrential rain.

Because of the storms and flash floods, the main airport of the city El-Prat and its surrounding areas were inundated, and people were warned to avoid travel "unless strictly necessary". 

In the airport, passengers were seen making their way through the water amid leaking ceilings and going from the terminal to the car park which was flooded with great torrents.

According to the Live Departures board, more than 50 flights were grounded because of the flooding and many others were delayed. 

Most of the delayed flights were of British Airways and Iberia Airline and the officials of the airport launched a crisis committee to deal with the chaos.

The company Aena, which manages El-Prat, in a statement said, "The Airport has set up its Crisis Committee to constantly monitor the impact of strong storms. The operations of JT Barcelona El Prat Airport have been affected by the strong storms affecting the Barcelona coastline and, very severely, the Baix Llobregat region."

"So far, 17 arrival flights have been diverted to alternative airports, while around fifty departure flights have been cancelled by airlines or are experiencing considerable delays. The Airport has set up its Crisis Committee to constantly monitor the impact of the strong storms, which are also affecting some areas of the terminals where some water has entered, mainly in the public area of Terminal 1 and in the car park," it added.

"The storms are also affecting some accesses to the Airport. To facilitate the mobility of vehicles, barriers have been opened in those parking areas that require alternative exits. The Rodalies and Metro services to access the Airport have been suspended by their respective operators. Departing passengers are being channelled so that they can access alternative means of transport," the statement further said.

Meanwhile, various highways were closed because of the flooding. 

Also Read: Spain’s largest peacetime recovery mission underway as flood death toll reaches 211

Spain's transport minister asks people to avoid travel

A message was sent on the mobile phones of the people forecasting "extreme and continued rainfall" on the city's southern outskirts.

The residents were asked to avoid gorges and canals, which generally remain dry.

Watch: Spain's King Visited a Suburb In Valencia Badly Hit by Floods

All the commuter trains were suspended by Spain's Transport Minister Oscar Puente in northeast Catalonia.

"Do not travel unless strictly necessary," read the message sent to eight million people.

In the videos shared on social media, heavy rainfall was seen falling on stairwells and streets were filled with water.

Because of the flood, train services were also impacted across the region and authorities cancelled classes at universities and schools while trying to limit the movement of the residents.

This comes a week after the horrific flash flood across eastern Spain killed at least 217 people.

(With inputs from agencies)