Storm Filomena: cold and snow across much of Spain, 6–15 January 2021

6 January 2021 to 15 January 2021. Updated 26 October 2026.

AEMET named this storm Filomena on 5 January 2021.

Over 10 days, 104 of Spain's 182 warning zones had an orange or red warning for cold and snow: 357 zone-days at orange or red, 61 of them red. The day with the most zones at orange or red was 9 January, with 67 zones.

9 January was the day with the most people in zones under an orange or red warning: 18.2 million people live there (INE municipal register, 2025).

RedOrangeYellowNo warningEach zone at the highest warning it had during the episode. Grey: no warning on those days.

True-colour satellite image of the Iberian Peninsula and the Balearic Islands on 9 January 2021 — Spain from space on 9 January 2021, the day with the most zones at orange or red. Image: NASA Worldview.

How it compares

It is number 5 of 119 episodes since June 2018 by zone-days at orange or red.
It is the largest of the 4 cold episodes since June 2018.

Day by day

Day	Red	Orange	Yellow	Orange or red warnings for
Wed 6 January	—	35	98	cold, wind, snow
Thu 7 January	—	52	79	snow, cold, wind
Fri 8 January	10	50	67	snow, cold, wind
Sat 9 January	16	51	58	snow, cold
Sun 10 January	5	12	66	snow, cold
Mon 11 January	2	19	66	cold
Tue 12 January	21	17	64	cold
Wed 13 January	3	18	53	cold
Thu 14 January	3	23	46	cold, wind
Fri 15 January	1	19	36	cold, wind

Zones with a warning each day, at their highest level that day.

The zones

Zone	Province	Highest level	Warning days
Serranía de Cuenca	Cuenca	red	10
Albarracín y Jiloca	Teruel	red	10
La Mancha toledana	Toledo	red	10
Parameras de Molina	Guadalajara	red	10
Sur, Vegas y Oeste	Madrid	red	10
Alcarria conquense	Cuenca	red	10
Ibérica de Burgos	Burgos	red	10
Ibérica zaragozana	Zaragoza	red	10
Sistema Central de Soria	Soria	red	10
Interior norte de Castellón	Castelló/Castellón	red	9
La Mancha albaceteña	Albacete	red	10
La Mancha conquense	Cuenca	red	10
Metropolitana y Henares	Madrid	red	10
Serranía de Guadalajara	Guadalajara	red	10
Sistema Central de Ávila	Ávila	red	10
Valle del Tajo	Toledo	red	10
Prelitoral sur de Tarragona	Tarragona	red	8
Alcarria de Guadalajara	Guadalajara	red	10
Gúdar y Maestrazgo	Teruel	red	10
Meseta de Soria	Soria	red	10
Meseta de Ávila	Ávila	red	10
Meseta de Segovia	Segovia	red	9
Interior norte de Valencia	València/Valencia	red	8
Interior sur de Castellón	Castelló/Castellón	red	9
Meseta de Burgos	Burgos	red	9
Bajo Aragón de Teruel	Teruel	red	8
Depresión central de Tarragona	Tarragona	red	5
Interior sur de Valencia	València/Valencia	red	8
Ribera del Ebro de Zaragoza	Zaragoza	red	7
Pirineo oscense	Huesca	orange	10
Pirineo de Lleida	Lleida	orange	9
Sanabria	Zamora	orange	9
Sistema Central de Segovia	Segovia	orange	10
Pirineo de Girona	Girona	orange	8
Cordillera Cantábrica de León	León	orange	10
Cordillera Cantábrica de Palencia	Palencia	orange	10
Ibérica de Soria	Soria	orange	10
Meseta de Salamanca	Salamanca	orange	9
Valle de Arán	Lleida	orange	9
Alcaraz y Segura	Albacete	orange	8
Ibérica riojana	La Rioja	orange	10
La Mancha de Ciudad Real	Ciudad Real	orange	10
Sierra de Madrid	Madrid	orange	10
Centro de Huesca	Huesca	orange	9
Meseta de Valladolid	Valladolid	orange	9
Sur de Huesca	Huesca	orange	9
Guadix y Baza	Granada	orange	8
Hellín y Almansa	Albacete	orange	8
Noroeste de Murcia	Murcia	orange	7
Sur de Ávila	Ávila	orange	7
Cazorla y Segura	Jaén	orange	5
Valle del Almanzora y Los Vélez	Almería	orange	5
Villuercas y Montánchez	Cáceres	orange	5
Cumbres de Gran Canaria	Gran Canaria	orange	4
Cumbres de La Palma	La Palma	orange	4
Este de La Palma	La Palma	orange	4
La Gomera	La Gomera	orange	4
Norte de Tenerife	Tenerife	orange	4
Sol y Guadalhorce	Málaga	orange	4
El Hierro	El Hierro	orange	3
Estrecho	Cádiz	orange	3
Sur de Ourense	Ourense	orange	9
Depresión central de Lleida	Lleida	orange	8
Prepirineo de Barcelona	Barcelona	orange	8
Valle del Guadiana	Ciudad Real	orange	8
Interior de Alicante	Alacant/Alicante	orange	7
La Siberia extremeña	Badajoz	orange	7
Montes de Toledo	Toledo	orange	7
Montes del norte y Anchuras	Ciudad Real	orange	7
Sierra de San Vicente	Toledo	orange	7
Altiplano de Murcia	Murcia	orange	6
Campiña gaditana	Cádiz	orange	6
Centro de Navarra	Navarra	orange	6
Centro y valle de Villaverde	Cantabria	orange	5
Gipuzkoa interior	Gipuzkoa	orange	5
Litoral norte de Alicante	Alacant/Alicante	orange	5
Llanada alavesa	Araba/Álava	orange	4
Norte de Gran Canaria	Gran Canaria	orange	4
Oeste de La Palma	La Palma	orange	4
Condado de Treviño	Burgos	orange	3
Grazalema	Cádiz	orange	3
Litoral gaditano	Cádiz	orange	3
Ribera del Ebro de Navarra	Navarra	orange	3
Bizkaia interior	Bizkaia	orange	2
Cuenca del Nervión	Araba/Álava	orange	2
Rioja alavesa	Araba/Álava	orange	2
Meseta de Palencia	Palencia	orange	9
Sistema Central de Salamanca	Salamanca	orange	9
Cantabria del Ebro	Cantabria	orange	8
Depresión central de Barcelona	Barcelona	orange	8
Meseta de Zamora	Zamora	orange	8
Cinco Villas de Zaragoza	Zaragoza	orange	7
Prelitoral de Girona	Girona	orange	7
Norte de Burgos	Burgos	orange	6
Pirineo navarro	Navarra	orange	6
Prelitoral norte de Tarragona	Tarragona	orange	6
Ribera del Ebro de La Rioja	La Rioja	orange	5
Barros y Serena	Badajoz	orange	4
Sur de Badajoz	Badajoz	orange	4
Área metropolitana de Tenerife	Tenerife	orange	4
Este, sur y oeste de Gran Canaria	Gran Canaria	orange	3
Este, sur y oeste de Tenerife	Tenerife	orange	3
Lanzarote	Lanzarote	orange	3
Prelitoral de Barcelona	Barcelona	orange	3

And 68 more zones with yellow warnings only.

What AEMET's stations measured

The most measured in the zones with an orange or red warning, on their warning days: a 128 km/h gust at Vallehermoso, Alto Igualero (La Gomera) on 6 January; a low of -25.4 °C at Bello (Albarracín y Jiloca) on 12 January.

Zone	Strongest gust	Lowest temperature
La Gomera	128 km/h Vallehermoso, Alto Igualero · 6 January	2.1 °C Vallehermoso, Alto Igualero · 9 January
Norte de Tenerife	120 km/h La Orotava, Cañadas Teide · 7 January	-2.0 °C La Orotava, Cañadas Teide · 9 January
Cumbres de Gran Canaria	111 km/h Tejeda, Cruz de Tejeda · 7 January	0.3 °C Vega de San Mateo · 9 January
Este de La Palma	108 km/h La Palma Aeropuerto · 6 January	10.1 °C San Andrés y Sauces · 9 January
Pirineo oscense	108 km/h Benasque · 15 January	-15.0 °C Sabiñánigo · 12 January
El Hierro	105 km/h Frontera, Sabinosa · 6 January	6.8 °C San Andrés, Valverde · 8 January
Interior norte de Castellón	104 km/h La Pobla de Benifassà-Fredes · 15 January	-10.0 °C Villafranca del Cid/vilafranca · 12 January
Oeste de La Palma	103 km/h Roque de los Muchachos · 7 January	-3.0 °C Roque de los Muchachos · 9 January
Este, sur y oeste de Gran Canaria	102 km/h Agüimes · 6 January	6.4 °C San Bartolome Tirajana, Cuevas del Pinar · 8 January
Gúdar y Maestrazgo	93 km/h Mosqueruela · 14 January	-14.6 °C Montalbán · 12 January
Norte de Gran Canaria	91 km/h Agaete - Suerte Alta · 7 January	6.0 °C Valleseco · 9 January
Bajo Aragón de Teruel	89 km/h Andorra, Horcallana · 15 January	-9.7 °C Valderrobres · 12 January
Sol y Guadalhorce	87 km/h Málaga Aeropuerto · 8 January	3.2 °C Benahavís · 9 January
Estrecho	86 km/h Tarifa · 6 January	10.1 °C Tarifa · 6 January
Centro y valle de Villaverde	85 km/h Alto Campoo · 10 January	-12.4 °C Alto Campoo · 8 January
Ibérica zaragozana	85 km/h Valmadrid · 15 January	-18.5 °C Daroca · 12 January
Ribera del Ebro de Zaragoza	85 km/h Quinto · 15 January	-12.2 °C Leciñena · 11 January
Área metropolitana de Tenerife	85 km/h Tenerife Norte Aeropuerto · 8 January	6.2 °C San Cristóbal de la Laguna,llano de los Loros · 9 January
Lanzarote	84 km/h Haría · 8 January	11.4 °C Tías · 8 January
Este, sur y oeste de Tenerife	83 km/h Arico · 7 January	12.0 °C Lomo del Balo · 8 January

And 84 more zones with an orange or red warning.

For each zone, the highest value its AEMET stations measured on the episode's warning days (the lowest, for the low temperature), with the station and the day. Rain from 07:00 to 07:00 UTC; gust: the day's strongest. It is what the zone's stations measured, not every town, and a measurement, like a warning, is not damage.

How AEMET's warnings unfolded

The red warning reached 61 zone-days. AEMET issued it ahead of time in 53 of them (median: 13 h) and for the current hour in the other 8: warnings are also raised as things unfold. The first warning of any level for those same days had come a median 36 h earlier.

Zone	Day	First warning	Red issued	For · notice
La Mancha albaceteña	Fri 8	Tue 5 Jan, 23:50 yellow	Thu 7 Jan, 11:19	06:00 · 19 h before
La Mancha conquense	Fri 8	Tue 5 Jan, 23:50 yellow	Thu 7 Jan, 11:19	10:00 · 23 h before
La Mancha toledana	Fri 8	Wed 6 Jan, 13:00 orange	Thu 7 Jan, 11:19	10:00 · 23 h before
Alcarria conquense	Fri 8	Tue 5 Jan, 23:50 yellow	Thu 7 Jan, 22:49	18:00 · 19 h before
Alcarria de Guadalajara	Fri 8	Wed 6 Jan, 13:00 yellow	Thu 7 Jan, 22:49	18:00 · 19 h before
Metropolitana y Henares	Fri 8	Wed 6 Jan, 13:00 yellow	Thu 7 Jan, 22:49	18:00 · 19 h before
Sur, Vegas y Oeste	Fri 8	Wed 6 Jan, 13:00 yellow	Thu 7 Jan, 22:49	18:00 · 19 h before
Valle del Tajo	Fri 8	Wed 6 Jan, 13:00 yellow	08:46	12:00 · 3 h before
Interior norte de Valencia	Fri 8	Tue 5 Jan, 23:50 yellow	10:20	12:00 · 100 min before
Interior sur de Valencia	Fri 8	Tue 5 Jan, 23:50 yellow	10:20	12:00 · 100 min before
Alcarria conquense	Sat 9	Wed 6 Jan, 23:50 orange	Thu 7 Jan, 23:00	00:00 · 25 h before
Alcarria de Guadalajara	Sat 9	Wed 6 Jan, 23:50 orange	Thu 7 Jan, 23:00	00:00 · 25 h before
La Mancha albaceteña	Sat 9	Wed 6 Jan, 23:50 orange	Thu 7 Jan, 23:00	00:00 · 25 h before
La Mancha conquense	Sat 9	Wed 6 Jan, 23:50 orange	Thu 7 Jan, 23:00	00:00 · 25 h before
La Mancha toledana	Sat 9	Wed 6 Jan, 23:50 orange	Thu 7 Jan, 23:00	00:00 · 25 h before

And 46 more zone-days.

The full timeline: 579 changes at orange or red

Only the changes involving red are listed: there were 579 in all.

Thu 7 January

11:19 La Mancha albaceteña: Raises the snow warning to red: Friday 8, 06:00–24:00. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
11:19 La Mancha conquense, La Mancha toledana: Raises the snow warning to red: Friday 8, 10:00–24:00. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
22:49 Alcarria conquense, Alcarria de Guadalajara, Metropolitana y Henares, Sur, Vegas y Oeste: Raises the snow warning to red: Friday 8, 18:00–24:00. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
23:00 Alcarria conquense, Alcarria de Guadalajara, Metropolitana y Henares, Sur, Vegas y Oeste: Raises the snow warning to red: Saturday 9, 00:00–12:00. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
23:00 La Mancha albaceteña, La Mancha conquense, La Mancha toledana: Raises the snow warning to red: Saturday 9, 00:00–06:00. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.

Fri 8 January

08:46 Valle del Tajo: Raises the snow warning to red: Friday 8, 12:00–24:00. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
10:20 Interior norte de Castellón, Interior sur de Castellón: Raises the snow warning to red: Saturday 9, all day. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
10:20 Interior norte de Valencia, Interior sur de Valencia: Raises the snow warning to red: Friday 8, 12:00–24:00. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
10:20 Interior norte de Valencia: Raises the snow warning to red: Saturday 9, 00:00–21:00. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
10:20 Interior sur de Valencia: Raises the snow warning to red: Saturday 9, 00:00–16:00. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
10:46 Valle del Tajo: Brings the red snow warning forward: now from 11:00 on Friday 8. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
10:46 Valle del Tajo: Raises the snow warning to red: Saturday 9, 00:00–06:00. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
11:29 Bajo Aragón de Teruel, Depresión central de Tarragona, Prelitoral sur de Tarragona, Ribera del Ebro de Zaragoza: Raises the snow warning to red: Saturday 9, all day. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
20:58 Interior sur de Valencia: Shortens the red snow warning: now until 10:00 on Saturday 9. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.

Sat 9 January

04:00 La Mancha conquense, La Mancha toledana, Valle del Tajo: Extends the red snow warning: now until 10:00 on Saturday 9. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
12:06 Bajo Aragón de Teruel: Raises the snow warning to red: Sunday 10, 00:00–10:00. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
12:06 Depresión central de Tarragona: Raises the snow warning to red: Sunday 10, 00:00–08:00. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
12:06 Prelitoral sur de Tarragona, Ribera del Ebro de Zaragoza: Raises the snow warning to red: Sunday 10, 00:00–06:00. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.
12:07 Interior norte de Castellón: Raises the snow warning to red: Sunday 10, 00:00–06:00. 20 cm of snow in 24 h.

Mon 11 January

11:10 Meseta de Soria: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 00:00–10:00. Lows of −16 °C.
11:25 La Mancha albaceteña: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 00:00–10:00. Lows of −12 °C.
11:25 La Mancha conquense: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 00:00–10:00. Lows of −14 °C.
16:37 Parameras de Molina: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 00:00–10:00. Lows of −16 °C.
16:37 Serranía de Cuenca, Serranía de Guadalajara: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 00:00–10:00. Lows of −14 °C.
16:44 Albarracín y Jiloca, Ibérica zaragozana: Raises the cold warning to red: Monday 11, 22:00–24:00. Lows of −15 °C.
16:44 Albarracín y Jiloca, Ibérica zaragozana: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 00:00–10:00. Lows of −15 °C.
16:44 Sistema Central de Soria: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 00:00–10:00. Lows of −14 °C.
22:17 Alcarria conquense, Alcarria de Guadalajara: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 00:00–10:00. Lows of −14 °C.
22:17 La Mancha toledana, Metropolitana y Henares, Sur, Vegas y Oeste: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 00:00–10:00. Lows of −12 °C.

Tue 12 January

05:38 Ibérica de Burgos: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 06:00–10:00. Lows of −14 °C.
05:38 Meseta de Segovia: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 06:00–10:00. Lows of −15 °C.
05:38 Meseta de Ávila, Sistema Central de Ávila: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 06:00–10:00. Lows of −14 °C.
05:39 Gúdar y Maestrazgo: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 06:00–10:00. Lows of −15 °C.
05:55 Meseta de Burgos: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 06:00–10:00. Lows of −14 °C.
05:55 Sistema Central de Soria: Lowers the cold warning to orange: Tuesday 12, 06:00–10:00. Lows of −13 °C.
08:36 Valle del Tajo: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 09:00–10:00. Lows of −13 °C.
22:11 Parameras de Molina: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 23:00–24:00. Lows of −20 °C.
22:11 Parameras de Molina: Raises the cold warning to red: Wednesday 13, 00:00–09:00. Lows of −20 °C.
22:37 Albarracín y Jiloca: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 12, 23:00–24:00. Lows of −18 °C.
22:37 Albarracín y Jiloca: Raises the cold warning to red: Wednesday 13, 00:00–10:00. Lows of −18 °C.

Wed 13 January

07:16 Ibérica zaragozana: Raises the cold warning to red: Wednesday 13, 08:00–10:00. Lows of −13 °C.
11:07 Parameras de Molina: Issues a red cold warning: Wednesday 13, 21:00–24:00. Lows of −15 °C.
11:07 Parameras de Molina: Raises the cold warning to red: Thursday 14, 00:00–10:00. Lows of −15 °C.
11:22 Albarracín y Jiloca: Issues a red cold warning: Wednesday 13, 21:00–24:00. Lows of −15 °C.
11:22 Albarracín y Jiloca: Raises the cold warning to red: Thursday 14, 00:00–10:00. Lows of −15 °C.
11:22 Ibérica zaragozana: Issues a red cold warning: Wednesday 13, 21:00–24:00. Lows of −12 °C.
11:22 Ibérica zaragozana: Raises the cold warning to red: Thursday 14, 00:00–10:00. Lows of −12 °C.

Thu 14 January

21:05 Parameras de Molina: Raises the cold warning to red: Thursday 14, 22:00–24:00. Lows of −14 °C.
21:05 Parameras de Molina: Raises the cold warning to red: Friday 15, 00:00–10:00. Lows of −14 °C.

AEMET's issue times, in mainland Spain time (Canary Islands in island time). Notice is the time from issue to the first hour the warning covered; a warning issued “for the current hour” runs from the hour it is published.

What this says and what it doesn't

A warning is an AEMET forecast, not a measurement or a damage report: it says a threshold is expected to be exceeded in a zone. A warning is not damage; a zone is not a building.

A zone-day is one warning zone with a warning on one day. Ten zones at orange on the same day make ten zone-days. A day with several warnings in one zone counts once, at its highest level.

Each zone has its own thresholds, so an orange heat warning in Asturias doesn't mean the same temperature as in Córdoba. More in how warnings work.

To cite: “Climaviso, from AEMET warnings”.

Source: official AEMET warnings, collected by Climaviso since June 2018.

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