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Once again, Portugal and Spain find themselves battling the aftermath of widespread inundation in the wake of Storm Claudia brought heavy rain and powerful gusts last week.

The Storm's Genesis and Journey

The storm system formed from a low-pressure zone that had beforehand driven early season freezing temperatures and snowfall through the eastern sectors of Canada and the north-eastern United States in early November.

The system tracked eastwards across the Atlantic Ocean during the second weekend of November before slowing and stalling to the north-west of the Iberian peninsula, snared in a dip of an ever more meandering air current.

Effects in the Iberian Peninsula

The northwestern Spanish region of Galicia was the first affected, with three to six inches of rain falling along its west coast in just a single day up to Wednesday night as a sluggish front of rain pushed across the western areas of the peninsula.

Additional rainfall and electrical storms on Thursday last week caused inundations to Portuguese localities where an older couple died in the capital Lisbon after floodwaters from the swollen Tagus invaded their residence as they were asleep.

Unsettled atmospheric states lasted through the weekend, with a violent whirlwind tearing through a campsite and a nearby hotel in Albufeira in the south in the Algarve region on Saturday last week, fatally injuring an British woman aged 85 and harming two dozen and eight persons.

Extended Consequences across the European continent

This system triggered more extensive impacts across the western European nations. By siphoning heated air from the subtropical zones, the system contributed to thermometers climbing in south-west France to 85.6 degrees Fahrenheit, the country's highest recorded November temperature.

By Friday, this hot and moist atmospheric body collided with a frigid air system across the northern areas of Europe, creating a rainfall belt running from the west of Ireland to Russia.

In the UK, this stalling band of rain delivered exceptionally large precipitation amounts, leading to severe flooding in Wales.

As the storm loses strength early this week, the frigid air will push south, giving Europe its premier experience of winter.

Simultaneous Occurrences in California

California experienced an "atmospheric river" the previous week, causing torrential rain and powerful winds that provoked sudden inundations and mudslides in regions affected by blazes earlier this year.

Over two inches of rain fell in California's southern part on Friday, with a further 50mm broadly over the state on the subsequent Saturday.

Over four inches of rain accumulated over coastal areas of Southern CA in all, attaining 200mm overall in locations at higher elevations.

An atmospheric river is a concentrated stream of hot, humid air originating from the tropical or subtropical regions.

Locations with fire damage including the Pacific Palisades area and the town of Altadena endured the most severe the sudden floods and earth movements, prompting evacuations.

Elsewhere in California, a 71-year-old man passed away after his car was carried away from a flooded bridge, and a young girl aged seven and her father were dragged into the sea by big swells on the Central Coast.