Lisbon: Portugal placed most of the country under red alert Saturday as Hurricane Leslie, which threatens to be the fiercest storm to hit the country since 1842, approached the coast.
Spectacular satellite imagery of hurricane #Leslie rapidly approaching the Iberian peninsula. A HIGH RISK exists for destructive winds and torrential rainfall with flash floods during landfall expected in Portugal tonight!
— severe-weather.EU (@severeweatherEU) October 13, 2018
Details: https://t.co/9FlUbqejG4
Video: @meteociel pic.twitter.com/6e0nm5mfOz
The country's civil protection officials called on people along the coast to stay indoors, saying the most serious conditions were likely to be Saturday night and Sunday morning.
Here are the 11 PM AST Oct. 12 Key Messages for Hurricane #Leslie, concerning potential impacts in #Portugal and #Spain after Leslie become post-tropical. https://t.co/0QLZRPSWLo pic.twitter.com/fJbyMKt5SA
— National Hurricane Center (@NHC_Atlantic) October 13, 2018
The Spanish authorities, meanwhile, were making their own preparations for the hurricane, which Spanish meteorologists expect to reach their territory early Sunday.
The Portuguese capital, Lisbon, is bracing for the first effects of the hurricane, with strong winds and rain expected at around 6pm (1700 GMT) on Saturday, said the Portugese meteorological institute.
According to meteorological records, only five hurricanes have ever arrived in this part of the Atlantic Ocean. Hurricane Leslie could turn out to be the fiercest storm to hit Portugal since 1842.
Strong winds from Hurricane Ophelia in Portugal and eastern Spain fed forest fires that killed around 40 people during the heatwave in 2017.
Spain is still recovering from the heavy rains that provoked a mudslide in the Mediterranean island of Majorca that killed 12 people Tuesday.
