Two dead in Catalonia due to torrential rains: Spanish officials

Two fatalities have been reported and another individual is missing following severe rains and flooding in Catalonia, Spain, according to authorities on Sunday. The death of a man was confirmed by Catalonia's leader, Salvador Illa, on social media after a wall collapsed in Tordera, a town north of Barcelona. Additionally, a person succumbed in Montornès del Vallès, while emergency services are currently searching for a missing individual in Pineda de Mar, located 32 miles north of Barcelona.

A red alert was issued by Catalan authorities, advising residents to remain indoors from 8 p.m. Saturday until 2 p.m. Sunday due to the potential impact of a "mini-hurricane" and the forecast of further heavy rain. Following torrential rain on Saturday, homes were inundated and vehicles submerged in Bellvitge and Cornella near Barcelona. Puddles of water stretched across motorways in the city of Barcelona.

Sarai Sarroca, director of the regional weather service Meteocat, stated on Saturday that an extraordinary weather system was centered over the Mediterranean Sea, and a "mini-hurricane" could travel inland in Catalonia. The disruption caused by the extreme weather led to flight cancellations or delays at Barcelona Airport, as reported by La Vanguardia newspaper on Saturday.

All local trains were affected by the heavy downpour, while shops closed early, football matches were abandoned, and a performance of Verdi's Aida at Barcelona's Liceu opera house was cancelled.