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The Iberian nations are again recovering from widespread flooding following Tempest Claudia delivered heavy rain and powerful gusts last week.

The Storm's Formation and Trajectory

This meteorological event developed from a region of depressed atmospheric pressure that had earlier caused early season chilly and snowy weather through the eastern sectors of Canada and the north-eastern US during the beginning of the eleventh month.

Claudia moved eastward across the Atlantic during the second weekend of November before losing momentum and stopping to the north-west of the Spanish and Portuguese landmass, snared in a dip of an ever more meandering air current.

Impact on Spain and Portugal

The northwestern Spanish region of Galicia was the first affected, with a substantial 80 to 150 millimetres of rain pouring down along its Atlantic coast in just 24 hours up to Wednesday evening as a sluggish front of rain pushed across western parts of the peninsula.

Additional rainfall and electrical storms on the following Thursday caused inundations to areas in Portugal where an older couple died in the capital Lisbon after water from the overflowing Tagus River invaded their residence as they rested.

Stormy conditions lasted through the weekend, with a violent whirlwind devastating a outdoor lodging area and a close-by inn in the town of Albufeira in Portugal's south on Saturday, claiming the life of an elderly British lady and wounding two dozen and eight persons.

Wider Effects across the European continent

The storm produced broader repercussions across Europe's western part. By drawing warm air from the warmer regions, the system assisted in raising temperatures in southwestern France to 29.8C (85.6F), the state's maximum ever late autumn reading.

By the following Friday, this warm and humid air mass met a chilly atmospheric body across the northern areas of Europe, forming a precipitation zone running from western Ireland to the Russian Federation.

In the UK, this stationary front of rain delivered record-breaking rain accumulations, leading to significant waterlogging in the principality of Wales.

As this weather phenomenon loses strength at the start of the week, the chilly atmospheric system will advance southward, giving Europe its premier experience of colder weather.

Simultaneous Occurrences in the state of California

California experienced a plume of tropical moisture last week, delivering torrential rain and powerful winds that provoked sudden inundations and mudslides in areas affected by forest fires in the recent past.

More than 50mm of rain poured down in the southern region of the state on last Friday, with a additional two inches widely across the state on Saturday last.

In excess of 100 millimetres of rain was deposited on coastal parts of southern California in all, hitting eight inches in total in spots on high ground.

Such a weather system is a narrow band of warm, moist air originating from the tropical or subtropical regions.

Locations with fire damage including the Pacific Palisades area and the town of Altadena suffered the most intense the rapid inundations and mudslides, forcing residents to flee.

Elsewhere in California, a elderly male lost his life after his automobile was swept off a flooded bridge, and a young girl aged seven and her parent were dragged into the ocean by large waves on the California's Central Coast.