CHAOS erupted across eastern Spain as a series of mini tsunamis battered a large swathe of coastline on Tuesday.
Monster waves pushed as far as 200 metres inland across tourist hotspots in Valencia, the Costa Blanca and Balearics – including Mallorca, Gandia, Javea, Cullera, Torrevieja, Orihuela and Elche.
Striking footage shows cars driving through floodwater in Santa Pola, Alicante, as holidaymakers watch incredulously from the beach in the aftermath of the tsunamis.
The event was the result of a rare weather phenomenon known as ‘meteotsunami,’ Spain’s state weather agency AEMET has said.
Unlike more destructive full-blown tsunamis, which are triggered by earthquakes, meteotsunamis are caused by weather – for example, when a sudden change in air pressure prompts sea levels to surge.
Experts said squalls and storms caused air pressure to soar abruptly between 7am and 11am, with sea levels rising by up to 70cm in as little as five minutes.
Elche resident Jorge Araujo, 39, told The Olive Press: “It was quite startling. We had just got to the beach when we saw these large waves crashing into the shore.
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“Beach bars got flooded and we had to wade through ankle-deep water to get back to our car.”
Despite the dramatic scenes, AEMET stressed that meteotsunamis are not a new phenomenon in the region.
Similar sudden changes in sea level were recorded along the Alicante coast in 2017, including in Torrevieja, Santa Pola, El Campello and the Marina de Elche.
The meteotsunami came as part of a sudden spell of stormy weather that has swept across Spain, bringing torrential rain, hail and strong winds to several parts of the country.
Some areas of Catalunya and Aragon were hit by flooding, fallen trees and travel disruption, with hailstones bigger than 5cm reported on Tuesday.
The dramatic change in weather followed a spell of sweltering summer temperatures, with parts of Spain seeing the mercury climb above 40C.
The heat has now given way to more unsettled conditions, with forecasters warning of a sharp switch from summer sunshine to storms.
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