The island, popular with Scots, faces a state of emergency, and holidaymakers are being urged to postpone their travel, or seek alternative accommodation and flights.
09:30, 13 Apr 2025Updated 10:28, 13 Apr 2025
People have been urged to avoid travelling on the island. (Image: Mirror)
This is the horror moment a popular holiday hotspot with Scots tourists was flooded by heavy rain during a devastating two-hour deluge.
On Saturday April 12 a state of emergency was declared by local officials in Lanzarote after torrential rain saw homes and cars swamped by floodwater. Cars were abandoned in the streets after roads were turned into deep and dangerous flowing rivers.
Shocking footage also showed carparks flooded and large swathes of the land submerged under brown murky water. Locals also complained of a horrific sewage smell in the area.
The storm suddenly broke out yesterday afternoon and the ground became waterlogged, which meant the water could not be soaked up. Residents in Arrecife, on the island’s south coast, were hit by the smell of raw sewage after flooding also affected the drainage system.
Flood waters approaching an apartment complex in Lanzarote. (Image: Mirror)
It is unclear how long the issue will take to fix, according to authorities. A staggering 60 litres of water fell per square metre in the brief period in the some of the heavy rain spots – which is more than a month’s worth of the average rainfall in the UK, reports the Mirror.
The Canary Islands government has declared a pre-alert for rain in Tenerife, Gran Canaria, Lanzarote, and Fuerteventure until 7am this morning. The public were urged to avoid all unnecessary travel.
Furthermore, the towns of Guatiza, Tahiche, Costa Teguise and Nazaret were all badly hit by the floodwater as rivers burst their banks after being overwhelmed by the deluge of rain.
The Lagomar River, which flows through Nazaret, became so flooded it spilled over onto the surrounding land. Water levels continued to rise and moved through channels towards the sea.
The huge downpour comes just days after Storm Oliver passed over the islands, prompting several flights to the popular tourist hotspot to be cancelled or diverted on Thursday.
A car being swept away by the floods in Lanzarote. (Image: Mirror)
This was due to dangerous flying conditions. Two flights from Gatwick, two from Manchester, two from Bristol and one each from Dublin, Birmingham, Bournemouth and Stansted were all diverted.
The island, which is popular with Scots, faces a state of emergency, and holidaymakers are being urged to postpone their travel, or seek alternative accommodation and flights.
With the Easter break underway for many families, local authorities confirmed they are working to ensure the safety of residents and visitors already on the holiday on island.
However, it is unclear how long the island will take to recover from the floodwater which has badly damaged roads, homes and travel to and from the holiday hotspot.
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The Record reported last month on Gran Canaria being hit by severe flooding, with cars swept into the sea as torrential rain caused havoc on the holiday island.
Tourists were urged to stay indoors as rising water levels posed a significant danger across the island, renowned for its white sand beaches.
The flooding affected Gran Canaria’s 850,000 residents — 40 per cent of the total population of the Canary Islands — leaving streets buried under mud and debris, and vehicles submerged beneath bridges.