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Malaga province experienced severe inundation over the weekend of December 27 to December 28, 2025, following intense rainfall that prompted Spain's State Meteorological Agency (AEMET) to issue a rare red alert for "extraordinary danger" across the Costa del Sol and Guadalhorce Valley. The extreme weather event warned of potential accumulations reaching 120 litres per square metre within a 12-hour period, leading to significant hydrological impact, particularly along the Guadalhorce River.

The Guadalhorce River breached its banks near Cártama around midnight on Sunday, cresting at a record 5.7 metres, with measured flows surging past 1,000 cubic metres per second, surpassing the previous high of 5.52 metres. Specific localities recorded exceptional totals, including Alhaurín el Grande with 131 litres per square metre and Fahala in Cártama with over 118 litres per square metre. The ES-Alert system was activated, broadcasting urgent warnings to mobile devices across 27 municipalities, advising residents in areas including Malaga city and Coín to avoid travel and seek higher ground.

Andalucia's regional government responded by activating Phase 1 of its Flood Risk Emergency Plan, deploying personnel from Infoca and the Provincial Fire Brigade (CPB) to manage the crisis, focusing on pumping and debris removal, especially in the lower section of Cártama Estación. The human toll included one confirmed fatality and two individuals initially reported missing in the Malaga region, with 112 Andalucía reporting 304 emergency calls from the province alone. Seven families in vulnerable areas, such as Cártama's Doña Ana district, required evacuation, with one family relocated to a shelter in Alhaurín de la Torre.

Residents expressed distress over property damage, with some citing structural issues, such as a railway boundary wall in Cártama Estación, as exacerbating drainage problems. This event renews the focus on long-term flood control strategies for the region. Local officials confirmed that infrastructure improvements remain under discussion, with the proposed construction of the upstream Cerro Blanco dam on the Río Grande identified as a critical measure for containing surges along the Guadalhorce River, benefiting historically vulnerable areas like Cártama.

Historical context underscores the recurring nature of these challenges; flood control in Malaga has been a concern since the early 20th century, with structures like the El Agujero Dam conceived after the 1907 flood on the Guadalmedina River. More recently, the Casasola dam, which protects the Campanillas district, required maintenance after a flood on October 29, 2025. The ongoing dialogue between authorities and residents centers on accelerating pending infrastructure projects, which previous estimates suggested would require at least 206 million euros in investment to address flood risks comparable to the scale of the Valencia 'Dana' storm.