By Dave Jamieson
Winter finally arrived in Spain at the weekend with heavy snow contributing to the death of two hikers as well as bringing road closures and cancelling flights.
Spain’s national weather agency, Aemet, issued special warnings putting 30 provinces on alert.
In Castellón, two women died after becoming stranded while hill-walking. They had set off on the Ruta dels Set Pobles (Seven Village Hike) in the Tinença de Benifassà mountain area and called the emergency services at 11.30pm on Saturday night to report that they were lost. A man with them was rescued on Sunday afternoon suffering from hypothermia, while another man was reported missing in Jaén after going out to find asparagus.
Cantabria activated emergency plans ahead of rain and melting snow swelling rivers while a number of mountain passes were closed in Asturias, Castilla León and Madrid, and wheel chains were required on 36 other roads.
