🔗 Share this article Tempest Claudia Delivers More Inundation to the Portuguese nation and Spain Once again, Portugal and Spain find themselves dealing with the consequences of significant flooding following Storm Claudia delivered torrential downpours and strong winds the previous week. The Storm's Origin and Path This weather system developed from an area of low pressure that had earlier ushered in early season freezing temperatures and snowfall through the eastern regions of Canada and the north-eastern US at the start of November. The system journeyed east across the Atlantic Ocean during the second weekend of November before decelerating and halting to the northwestern area of the Iberian peninsula, snared in a dip of an ever more meandering jet stream. Effects in Iberia Spain's Galicia area in the northwest was hit first, with a substantial 80 to 150 millimetres of rain pouring down along its Atlantic coast in just one full day up to the evening of Wednesday as a sluggish front of rain crawled across the western sectors of the peninsula. More downpours and stormy weather on Thursday last week led to floods to areas in Portugal where an elderly couple lost their lives in the capital Lisbon after water from the overflowing Tagus River flooded their dwelling as they rested. Tempestuous weather persisted into the weekend, with a tornado ripping through a campsite and a nearby hotel in Albufeira in Portugal's south on the weekend's Saturday, claiming the life of an British woman aged 85 and injuring 28 people. Wider Effects across the European continent The storm produced wider effects across Europe's western part. By pulling tropical air from the subtropical zones, the system assisted in raising temperatures in south-west France to 29.8C (85.6F), the state's maximum ever November temperature. By the following Friday, this hot and moist atmospheric body collided with a cold air mass across more northern parts of Europe, creating a band of rain stretching from Ireland's west to Russia. In the UK, this stationary front of rain brought record-breaking rain accumulations, causing major inundations in the Welsh region. As Claudia loses strength in the coming days, the cold air mass will push south, delivering to Europe its initial glimpse of winter. Related Incidents in the state of California California encountered a so-called atmospheric river recently, bringing heavy rain and strong winds that led to rapid flooding and debris flows in areas impacted by wildfires earlier this year. Over two inches of rain fell in California's southern part on Friday, with a another 50 millimetres across extensive areas of California on Saturday. In excess of 100 millimetres of rain fell over coastal parts of southern California in all, attaining a full 200 millimetres in locations at higher elevations. This meteorological feature is a narrow band of hot, humid air stemming from the tropical or subtropical regions. Burn scar areas including Pacific Palisades and Altadena region suffered the most intense the rapid inundations and mudslides, prompting evacuations. Across California, a elderly male lost his life after his vehicle was washed off a flooded bridge, and a young girl aged seven and her father were dragged into the Pacific by big swells on the the state's central shoreline.