Authorities sent two Es-Alert messages to 27 Málaga municipalities in under six hours due to river rises from heavy rains. The Guadalhorce exceeded five meters in height, prompting preventive evacuations and infrastructure closures, though no personal injuries were reported. The area is still recovering from recent floods that killed two people.
On Sunday, January 4, 2026, shortly after 2:00 PM, mobiles in 27 municipalities across Costa del Sol and Valle del Guadalhorce in Málaga received the first Es-Alert from Civil Protection. The message urged extreme caution and avoiding unnecessary travel amid a red alert from the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) for torrential rains. This prompted closures of shopping centers, monuments, museums, and reduced public transport, with Christmas parades suspended.
At 10:23 PM, a second alert arrived, reminding residents of precautions as rivers continued to rise. The Andalusian Regional Government stressed that preventive measures had been effective, averting personal injuries despite 216 incidents reported by Emergencies 112 service. The Guadalhorce, which has flooded neighborhoods five times in the past year, reached over five meters, nearing the record of 5.78 meters set the previous week. In Cártama, 30 people were evacuated to a sports pavilion, with 20 staying overnight.
Rainfall was heavy in the western area: 191 liters per square meter in Los Reales (Estepona), flooding a school, and 161 in Ojén, causing a landslide in La Mairena. In Monda, 12 families were evacuated after a retaining wall collapsed, and a bridge fell in Coín. The Río Grande hit three meters, its historical maximum. Presidency Councillor Antonio Sanz warned of risks at fords: “Nobody can know the height level those crossings carry, so we might face surprises like those of the last days, so unpleasant and disastrous.” Andalusian President Juan Manuel Moreno Bonilla urged: “Let no one get complacent at night or cross flooded areas.”
On Monday, January 5, residents of Doña Ana in Cártama were cleaning mud from homes, while roads like the A-7103 in Ojén were repaired after being cut by a landslide. The storm shifted to Axarquía with a yellow alert for storms. This Storm Francis follows the December 28 event that killed two in Alhaurín el Grande and also triggered Es-Alert.
