STAGGERING footage shows the holiday hotspot Lanzarote swamped by violent flooding after a torrential two-hour dump of rain.
Homes and roads were overcome by the surging floodwater on Saturday afternoon, prompting officials to declare a state of emergency.
XCarparks and roads were engulfed by water following intense rainfall on Saturday[/caption]
XRivers turned into raging torrents, with some bursting their banks[/caption]
EPABrown water gushed through usually-dry ravines as it made for the sea[/caption]
Clips uploaded to social media show roads and carparks turned into deep, fast-flowing rivers
Cars lie stranded in the streets which are impossible to navigate.
Huge swathes of the land are submerged under brown water as it gushes down towards the coast.
A storm broke out early Saturday afternoon, unloading a deluge of rainfall onto the island.
The ground very quickly became waterlogged, so the water could not soak away.
Instead, it rose higher and higher and poured through channels towards the sea.
The city of Arrecife, on the island’s south coast, was hit particularly hard by the weather.
Residents were greeted by the smell of raw sewage after flooding overwhelmed the drainage system.
Also badly affected were the towns of Tahiche, Costa Teguise, Guatiza and Nazaret.
Rivers became raging torrents and burst their banks, unable to deal with the sheer volume of water.
For example, the Lagomar River flowing through Nazaret spilled over onto the surrounding land.
Some 60 litres of water fell per square metre in a two hour period in the worst-affected spots.
That’s more than a month’s worth of the average rainfall in the UK.
Bizarrely, other areas of the island remained completely dry.
Lanzarote’s Security Consortium activate the island’s Emergency Plan until 7am on Sunday morning.
The public are urged to take extreme precautions and avoid all unnecessary travel.
Saturday’s downpour followed more heavy rainfall earlier in the week as Storm Olivier passed over the island.
Several flights to and from Lanazrote airport were cancelled or diverted on Thursday due to dangerous flying conditions.
Two flights from Manchester, two from Gatwick, two from Bristol and one from each of Cardiff, Stanstead, Birmingham and Dublin and Bournemouth were diverted.
Cars lie stranded in the middle of unpassable submerged streetsX
EPADark grey clouds gathered over the island and dumped rain down onto the land[/caption]