Cold and snow in Cataluña, Castilla - La Mancha and elsewhere, 4–7 January 2026

4 January 2026 to 7 January 2026. Updated 26 October 2026.

It coincides with storm Goretti, named by Météo-France on 6 January 2026.

Over 4 days, 29 of Spain's 182 warning zones had an orange or red warning for cold and snow: 44 zone-days at orange or red, 3 of them red. The day with the most zones at orange or red was 6 January, with 17 zones.

5 January was the day with the most people in zones under an orange or red warning: 2.8 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 6 January 2026 — Spain from space on 6 January 2026, the day with the most zones at orange or red. Image: NASA Worldview.

How it compares

It is number 71 of 119 episodes since June 2018 by zone-days at orange or red.
Among the 4 cold episodes, it is number 3.
There hadn't been a cold episode this widespread since February 2023.

Day by day

Day	Red	Orange	Yellow	Orange or red warnings for
Sun 4 January	1	4	35	rain
Mon 5 January	—	13	61	snow, cold
Tue 6 January	1	16	67	cold, snow
Wed 7 January	1	8	61	cold

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

The zones

Zone	Province	Highest level	Warning days
Parameras de Molina	Guadalajara	red	4
Sol y Guadalhorce	Málaga	red	3
Pirineo oscense	Huesca	orange	4
Pirineo de Girona	Girona	orange	3
Pirineo de Lleida	Lleida	orange	3
Valle de Arán	Lleida	orange	3
Albarracín y Jiloca	Teruel	orange	4
Ibérica zaragozana	Zaragoza	orange	4
Serranía de Guadalajara	Guadalajara	orange	4
Centro y valle de Villaverde	Cantabria	orange	3
Prepirineo de Barcelona	Barcelona	orange	3
Norte de Burgos	Burgos	orange	2
Depresión central de Lleida	Lleida	orange	3
Gúdar y Maestrazgo	Teruel	orange	3
Prelitoral de Barcelona	Barcelona	orange	3
Prelitoral norte de Tarragona	Tarragona	orange	3
Prelitoral sur de Tarragona	Tarragona	orange	3
Vertiente cantábrica de Navarra	Navarra	orange	3
Cuenca del Nervión	Araba/Álava	orange	2
Llanada alavesa	Araba/Álava	orange	2
Condado de Treviño	Burgos	orange	1
Depresión central de Tarragona	Tarragona	orange	1
Estrecho	Cádiz	orange	1
Gipuzkoa interior	Gipuzkoa	orange	1
Grazalema	Cádiz	orange	1
Interior norte de Valencia	València/Valencia	orange	1
Interior sur de Castellón	Castelló/Castellón	orange	1
Litoral gaditano	Cádiz	orange	1
Litoral norte de Alicante	Alacant/Alicante	orange	1

And 90 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 98 km/h gust at Alto Campoo (Centro y valle de Villaverde) on 6 January; a low of -17.4 °C at Cap de Vaquèira (Valle de Arán) on 7 January.

Zone	Strongest gust	Lowest temperature
Centro y valle de Villaverde	98 km/h Alto Campoo · 6 January	-9.2 °C Alto Campoo · 4 January
Pirineo oscense	94 km/h Cerler, Cogulla · 7 January	-15.6 °C Astún, la Raca · 6 January
Gúdar y Maestrazgo	90 km/h Mosqueruela · 7 January	-7.7 °C Montalbán · 6 January
Ibérica zaragozana	82 km/h Valmadrid · 6 January	-7.9 °C Daroca · 6 January
Pirineo de Lleida	80 km/h Port Ainé · 7 January	-16.5 °C Port Ainé · 6 January
Pirineo de Girona	79 km/h Maçanet de Cabrenys · 6 January	-11.1 °C La Molina · 7 January
Litoral gaditano	78 km/h Barbate · 4 January	10.9 °C Vejer de la Frontera · 4 January
Valle de Arán	77 km/h Cap de Vaquèira · 7 January	-17.4 °C Cap de Vaquèira · 7 January
Prelitoral de Barcelona	71 km/h Pontons · 7 January	-4.4 °C Caldes de Montbui · 7 January
Sol y Guadalhorce	71 km/h Málaga Aeropuerto · 6 January	3.0 °C Benahavís · 6 January
Estrecho	69 km/h San Roque · 4 January	12.1 °C Tarifa · 4 January
Serranía de Guadalajara	65 km/h Pantano el Vado · 6 January	-8.1 °C Sigüenza · 5 January
Albarracín y Jiloca	64 km/h Cedrillas · 7 January	-12.6 °C Bello · 5 January
Prelitoral sur de Tarragona	62 km/h Estación de Tortosa (roquetes) · 6 January	-3.3 °C Cabacés · 6 January
Grazalema	59 km/h Jimena de la Frontera · 4 January	7.5 °C Grazalema · 4 January
Norte de Burgos	56 km/h Briviesca · 6 January	-3.8 °C Miranda de Ebro · 5 January
Gipuzkoa interior	51 km/h Azpeitia · 6 January	-3.4 °C Segura · 6 January
Cuenca del Nervión	49 km/h Amurrio · 6 January	-2.0 °C Aramaio, Etxaguen · 6 January
Llanada alavesa	48 km/h Agurain/salvatierra, Opakua · 6 January	-7.8 °C Vitoria-Gasteiz Aeropuerto · 7 January
Prelitoral norte de Tarragona	46 km/h Llorac · 7 January	-7.6 °C Llorac · 7 January

And 9 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 3 zone-days. AEMET issued it ahead of time in 1 of them (median: 13 h) and for the current hour in the other 2: warnings are also raised as things unfold. The first warning of any level for those same days had come a median 2 days earlier.

Zone	Day	First warning	Red issued	For · notice
Sol y Guadalhorce	Sun 4	Fri 2 Jan, 11:28 yellow	14:22	14:00 · for the current hour
Parameras de Molina	Tue 6	Sat 3 Jan, 23:50 yellow	03:42	03:00 · for the current hour
Parameras de Molina	Wed 7	Mon 5 Jan, 11:32 yellow	Tue 6 Jan, 10:42	00:00 · 13 h before

The full timeline: 74 changes at orange or red

Fri 2 January

23:50 Depresión central de Lleida, Depresión central de Tarragona, Interior norte de Valencia, Interior sur de Castellón, Prelitoral norte de Tarragona, Prelitoral sur de Tarragona: Issues a orange snow warning: Monday 5, 00:00–18:00. 5 cm of snow in 24 h.

Sat 3 January

11:42 Sol y Guadalhorce: Raises the rain warning to orange: Sunday 4, 00:00–18:00. Up to 80 mm in 12 h.
11:46 Estrecho: Raises the rain warning to orange: Sunday 4, 00:00–18:00. Up to 80 mm in 12 h.
11:48 Pirineo de Lleida, Valle de Arán: Raises the cold warning to orange: Monday 5, 00:00–09:00. Lows of −10 °C.
15:24 Sol y Guadalhorce: Lowers the rain warning to yellow: Sunday 4, 00:00–18:00. Up to 25 mm in 1 h.
19:04 Estrecho: Extends the orange rain warning: now until 21:00 on Sunday 4. Up to 100 mm in 12 h.
19:08 Sol y Guadalhorce: Raises the rain warning to orange: Sunday 4, 00:00–18:00. Up to 100 mm in 12 h.
19:13 Centro y valle de Villaverde: Raises the snow warning to orange: Monday 5, 12:00–24:00. 5 cm of snow in 24 h.
19:13 Pirineo oscense: Raises the cold warning to orange: Monday 5, 00:00–09:00. Lows of −10 °C.
23:50 Centro y valle de Villaverde: Issues a orange snow warning: Tuesday 6, 00:00–12:00. 5 cm of snow in 24 h.
23:50 Pirineo de Lleida, Pirineo oscense, Valle de Arán: Issues a orange cold warning: Tuesday 6, 00:00–09:00. Lows of −10 °C.

Sun 4 January

02:31 Litoral norte de Alicante: Raises the rain warning to orange: Sunday 4, 03:00–06:00. Up to 40 mm in 1 h.
04:37 Litoral norte de Alicante: Extends the orange rain warning: now until 12:00 on Sunday 4. Up to 114 mm in 12 h.
09:42 Depresión central de Lleida, Depresión central de Tarragona, Prelitoral norte de Tarragona, Prelitoral sur de Tarragona: Lowers the snow warning to yellow: Monday 5, 00:00–18:00. 2 cm of snow in 24 h.
09:42 Pirineo de Girona: Raises the cold warning to orange: Monday 5, 00:00–09:00. Lows of −10 °C.
09:42 Sol y Guadalhorce: Extends the orange rain warning: now until 21:00 on Sunday 4. Up to 30 mm in 1 h.
09:50 Interior norte de Valencia, Interior sur de Castellón: Shortens the orange snow warning: now until 08:00 on Monday 5. 5 cm of snow in 24 h.
11:11 Litoral norte de Alicante: Extends the orange rain warning: now until 18:00 on Sunday 4. Up to 114 mm in 12 h.
11:31 Pirineo de Girona: Issues a orange cold warning: Tuesday 6, 00:00–09:00. Lows of −10 °C.
14:22 Sol y Guadalhorce: Raises the rain warning to red: Sunday 4, 15:00–24:00. Up to 120 mm in 12 h.
16:28 Grazalema: Raises the rain warning to orange: Sunday 4, 17:00–24:00. Up to 90 mm in 12 h.
18:59 Pirineo de Girona, Pirineo de Lleida, Pirineo oscense, Valle de Arán: Lowers the cold warning to yellow: Monday 5, 00:00–09:00. Lows of −6 °C.
19:17 Sol y Guadalhorce: Lowers the rain warning to orange: Sunday 4, 20:00–24:00. Up to 30 mm in 1 h.
19:18 Litoral gaditano: Raises the rain warning to orange: Sunday 4, 20:00–24:00. Up to 80 mm in 12 h.
21:19 Estrecho: Raises the rain warning to orange: Sunday 4, 22:00–24:00. Up to 90 mm in 12 h.
23:50 Pirineo de Girona, Pirineo de Lleida, Pirineo oscense, Prepirineo de Barcelona, Valle de Arán: Issues a orange cold warning: Wednesday 7, 00:00–09:00. Lows of −10 °C.

Mon 5 January

09:26 Centro y valle de Villaverde: Extends the orange snow warning: now until 15:00 on Tuesday 6. 10 cm of snow in 24 h.
10:54 Norte de Burgos: Raises the snow warning to orange: Monday 5, 21:00–24:00. 5 cm of snow in 24 h.
10:54 Norte de Burgos: Raises the snow warning to orange: Tuesday 6, 00:00–15:00. 5 cm of snow in 24 h.
11:56 Prelitoral de Barcelona, Prelitoral norte de Tarragona: Raises the snow warning to orange: Monday 5, 12:00–15:00. 5 cm of snow in 24 h.
18:00 Parameras de Molina: Raises the cold warning to orange: Tuesday 6, 00:00–09:00. Lows of −10 °C.
18:17 Albarracín y Jiloca, Gúdar y Maestrazgo: Raises the cold warning to orange: Tuesday 6, 00:00–09:00. Lows of −10 °C.
18:45 Condado de Treviño: Issues a orange snow warning: Tuesday 6, 00:00–12:00. 5 cm of snow in 24 h.
18:46 Cuenca del Nervión, Llanada alavesa: Raises the snow warning to orange: Tuesday 6, 00:00–12:00. 5 cm of snow in 24 h.

Tue 6 January

03:42 Parameras de Molina: Raises the cold warning to red: Tuesday 6, 04:00–09:00. Lows of −15 °C.
09:30 Cuenca del Nervión, Llanada alavesa: Extends the orange snow warning: now until 15:00 on Tuesday 6. 5 cm of snow in 24 h.
09:30 Gipuzkoa interior, Vertiente cantábrica de Navarra: Raises the snow warning to orange: Tuesday 6, 10:00–15:00. 5 cm of snow in 24 h.
10:42 Parameras de Molina: Issues a red cold warning: Tuesday 6, 21:00–24:00. Lows of −14 °C.
10:42 Parameras de Molina: Raises the cold warning to red: Wednesday 7, 00:00–09:00. Lows of −14 °C.
11:29 Albarracín y Jiloca, Pirineo de Girona, Pirineo de Lleida, Pirineo oscense, Prepirineo de Barcelona, Valle de Arán: Issues a orange cold warning: Tuesday 6, 21:00–24:00. Lows of −10 °C.
11:29 Albarracín y Jiloca: Raises the cold warning to orange: Wednesday 7, 00:00–09:00. Lows of −10 °C.
11:29 Ibérica zaragozana: Issues a orange cold warning: Tuesday 6, 21:00–24:00. Lows of −8 °C.
11:29 Ibérica zaragozana: Raises the cold warning to orange: Wednesday 7, 00:00–09:00. Lows of −8 °C.
19:04 Serranía de Guadalajara: Raises the cold warning to orange: Tuesday 6, 21:00–24:00. Lows of −10 °C.
19:04 Serranía de Guadalajara: Raises the cold warning to orange: Wednesday 7, 00:00–09:00. Lows of −10 °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.

← Previous episode · All episodes · Next episode → · 2026 warnings review