Heavy rain floods Bilbao's Old Town, forces theater closure and tunnel shutdown

Saturday evening saw Bilbao's historic Casco Viejo inundated as a storm dumped more than 70 mm of rain across the city and surrounding province. Streets were ankle-deep, and in some areas water rose to the knees, prompting Euskalmet to upgrade the warning to orange for Bizkaia, with a yellow alert staying in force until 6 a.m. the next day. SOS Deiak recorded roughly 150 incidents linked to the downpour, ranging from flooded garages and local businesses to the closure of the Avanzada tunnel in Leioa.

The Arriaga theater had to cancel a show after electrical failures, and other municipalities such as Balmaseda and Llodio experienced similar flooding. Forecasts call for continued rain early Sunday, easing later in the day, with temperatures a few degrees cooler than usual.