Wettest October in Over a Century
The month of October 2026 has been one of the wettest on record in Catalonia, with several areas experiencing rainfall five times higher than the long-term average. According to the Meteorological Service of Catalonia (Meteocat), regions including Baix Ebre, Montsià, Baix Llobregat, Barcelonès, Maresme, and Vallès Oriental were exceptionally affected by extreme weather events, particularly mesoscale convective systems at the start of the month. At the Fabra Observatory in Barcelona and the Ebre Observatory, October 2026 ranks as the second and third rainiest October in their 114 and 121 years of data respectively.
Cabrils Station Sets New Records
The weather station in Cabrils (Maresme) recorded 37.8 mm of rain in just 10 minutes on 17th October 2026, a new record for that interval. This station already held records for rainfall in 30 minutes (84.8 mm) and one hour (132.6 mm), both set during a storm on 12th October 2016. Aleix Serra, head of Data Quality Control at Meteocat, confirmed that Cabrils is one of the stations with the most rainfall records across different time intervals.
"The month was generally rainy in Catalonia, but in certain areas it was exceptional due to the extreme meteorological episodes we experienced,"
said Anna Rius, head of the Climate Services team at Meteocat.
Temperature and Regional Contrasts
Despite the heavy rain, October was warmer than average, particularly in the higher elevations of the Pyrenees. A persistent anticyclone blocked the movement of both cold and warm air masses for much of the month, shaping the overall climate pattern. While southern and eastern regions saw extreme rainfall, with locations like L'Ametlla de Mar, Les Cases d'Alcanar, El Perelló, and Granollers surpassing five times the 1991–2020 rainfall average, the far northwestern areas, including Alt Pirineu and Aran, experienced a rainfall deficit. The full technical report is available on the Meteocat monthly bulletin page.
Sources: Diari Catalunya, Govern de Catalunya, Nació Digital, VilaWeb (EFE).
