A sudden downpour left Granollers flooded and commuters stranded. Emergency alerts came too late, and locals are demanding answers from city officials.
Chaos hit Granollers before the first official storm alert even landed. Streets filled with water. Cars sat stuck. Parents rushed to collect children as schools shut their doors. For many, the warning came after the city was already underwater.
Judith watched the Congost river from her balcony. She saw water roaring past, faster than she had ever seen. “The alert arrived when we were already on the move or had reached our destinations,” she said. Her words matched what thousands felt that Monday—no one saw the chaos coming.
According to Catalan and Spanish media, rainfall in Granollers reached between 248 and 343 liters per square meter by the morning of October 5, with over 68–95 liters per square meter falling in a short period.
Over the weekend, people had time to get ready. On Monday, the storm hit with no warning. Arnau Torrillas, a local and Junts per Catalunya mayoral candidate, did not hold back: “This time, the emergency was managed very poorly and led to collapse. Lives were put at risk. Everyone went to work and school as usual.”
The first regional alert came at 8:02 a.m. It warned of “locally intense” rain in Maresme and Vallès Oriental. The advice was simple: be careful and avoid flood-prone spots. But by then, videos were already spreading online. Drivers struggled through deep water near the Granollers ring road and the Renfe station. Bins and parked cars floated away.
At 9:28 a.m., a stronger warning finally arrived. It told people: “Do not travel. Stay inside buildings. If water reaches you, move to higher floors. Avoid basements and ground levels.” But the city was already in trouble. A landslide near the train tracks sent water pouring into Granollers station. Renfe trains stopped running between Granollers and Montmeló. Ferrocat went into pre-alert. Reports from RAC1 and TodoAlicante said firefighters had to evacuate passengers from a Rodalies train stranded by the floods.
The storm in Granollers was part of a broader extreme weather event across Catalonia on October 4–5, 2026, which led to widespread flooding, road closures, and major disruptions to Rodalies train services on several lines. Authorities progressively escalated official warnings, and Civil Protection sent ES-Alert messages urging residents to avoid travel and stay indoors as the situation worsened.
Adriana C. filmed the flooded tracks from her balcony. She summed up the feeling in the city: “Everything has been a mess since Sunday. On Monday, they didn’t close the roads until cars were already trapped. The alert came when we were all already out.”
The city council, led by the PSC like the regional government, announced school closures at 8:54 a.m. That was just before the second regional alert. Some parents only found out thanks to direct messages from schools. Adriana C. got an email at 8:37 a.m. telling her not to bring her child. Main roads into Granollers, like Ronda Sud and Avenida de la Estació del Nord, were blocked off.
Mayor Alba Barnusell defended the city’s actions. She said the storm was “totally unexpected” and that the council focused on safety from the start. She thanked professionals for stopping injuries and praised residents for their “responsibility and common sense.”
The weekend’s rain had already soaked the city. It dumped 224 liters per square meter before Monday’s storm even began. The new downpour opened a sinkhole on Josep Umbert street. Offices, including a law firm, had to be evacuated. Firefighters said no one was hurt. City technicians checked the damage. Shops and ground-floor businesses flooded. In one clothing store, the storeroom ceiling almost collapsed from the weight of water. Laura N., who works there, could not get to her job. “The train tracks run above, and the only way through was a flooded underpass. The only way to cross would have been to swim.”
Granollers is not the only city struggling with emergency alerts. As reported earlier, other Spanish regions have also faced heavy rain and late warnings. The Granollers storm shows how even cities with good infrastructure can be caught off guard when communication fails. International agencies like AFP reported that the wider storm in Catalonia caused deaths and missing people. Emergency crews rescued drivers and pedestrians from flooded streets in Granollers and nearby towns.
When alerts come after the water rises, the system fails. This week, Granollers learned that lesson the hard way. In a world of instant messages, a late warning can turn a storm into a disaster. The city now has to rebuild trust in its emergency system. Next time, minutes could decide everything.
