- The Government delegate highlights the nature of the public service of meteorological information provided by the state agency and its contribution to the security of people and goods and to the well-being and sustainable development of Spanish society.
- Under the slogan ‘Together, let us reduce the gap in early warning systems’, the territorial delegation of AEMET has held several conferences on a day commemorating the entry into force of the agreement by which the World Meteorological Organization was established in 1950
- Guevara has recalled the Government of Spain will invest 1.5 million euros in the renewal of the meteorological radar and about 200,000 euros in the replacement of three state-of-the-art meteorological stations in Lorca, Cartagena and Cieza
March 24, 2025. The delegate of the Government has today inaugurated the act of commemoration of the World Meteorological Day organized each year by the Territorial Delegation of AEMET, where she has claimed the work of the professionals of the state agency.
“Today is a good day to publicly recognize and support the work of all its professionals and claim the nature of public service of meteorological information provided by AEMET, because, through its activity, it supports the exercise of other public policies and private activities and contributes decisively to the security of people and goods and the well-being and sustainable development of Spanish society,” he said.
Since 1961, World Meteorological Day commemorates the entry into force, on March 23, 1950, of the convention establishing the World Meteorological Organization and the essential contribution that national meteorological services make to the safety and well-being of society.
“With the motto chosen for this year, ‘Together, let’s reduce the gap in early warning systems,’ we intend to value early warning systems in disaster prevention and mitigation, highlighting how these systems can help people anticipate and prepare for various natural hazards,” added Guevara.
The government delegate recalled that the latest report of the World Economic Forum warns that the economic impact caused by extreme weather phenomena has multiplied by eight in the last 50 years and represents a significant threat to companies and economies around the world.
Guevara has highlighted that the Government of Spain is aware of this reality and, consequently, is making a great effort in the modernization and improvement of the meteorological infrastructures essential to maintain and improve the warning and alert systems related to extreme weather phenomena.
“In this sense, the investments that we will make this year and next year in the Region of Murcia contemplate the renewal of the meteorological radar for an amount of 1.5 million euros, the replacement of three state-of-the-art meteorological stations (Lorca, Cartagena and Cieza), with an investment of 180,000 euros, and the maintenance of the operation of the self-probe station with an investment in probes for 2025 of more than 114,000 euros,” he said.
According to the territorial delegate of AEMET, Juan Esteban Palenzuela, the Atlas of mortality and economic losses caused by meteorological, climatic and hydrological risks of the World Meteorological Organization indicates that between 1970 and 2021, in Europe 1,784 disasters were attributed to this type of phenomena, the most frequent being those related to floods. These disasters, he added, caused 166,492 deaths and economic losses worth about 518 billion euros.
Palenzuela has stressed that the objective of AEMET is always to improve the provision of public service. “AEMET is a leading agency and always tries to improve predictions and warnings, with constant monitoring of weather conditions to issue warnings at all times with the greatest possible anticipation and foresight,” he said.
The event was also attended by the head of the Civil Protection Unit of the Government Delegation, Julio Martínez Torreblanca, and María Fernanda Arbáizar, head of the Civil Protection Service of the Autonomous Community, who gave lectures.