Tornadoes and severe storms in Spain

A climatology of tornadoes, waterspouts, and straight winds linked to convection in Spain is presented. The database is divided into three periods according to the main source of information. The three distributions of severe weather are very sensitive to the sources of information, much more than to a possible change in climate. The early period, up to 1825, comprises cases that contain the real facts together with spurious inputs such as religion, myths, beliefs, etc, mixed in an unknown proportion. The period between 1826 and 1975, and the most recent one, up to 2009, enable us to observe geographical and temporal variations as a function of societal changes. The analysis of temporal and geographical distributions allows us to frame the risk in the face of severe storms, and the changes in their perception and management that have come about over time. Although the most recent tornadoes have been weak or strong, the Cadiz tornado of 1671 demonstrates that an extremely rare and violent event can occur in Spain. The large number of victims claimed by this tornado makes it one of the most important in the world. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.