AN URGENT search and rescue mission has been launched for three people who are said to be missing in a storm-battered Brit holiday hotspot.
More than 300 emergency incidents have been reported across Málaga after Spain’s Costa del Sol was hit by torrential rain.
Red weather alerts for “extreme danger” have been issued across 27 municipalities in the Málaga region.
Three people are now understood to be missing in the area around the Fahala River as floodwaters reached worrying levels after heavy rainfall.
Firefighters have rescued three people including a child trapped in a house flooded by the overflowing of the Vadeurraca stream.
Two others were rescued from a farm in Nueva Aljaima, who were stuck inside their house amid horror flashfloods
The picturesque favourite for Brits was thrown into chaos after heavy rains battered the holiday hotspot in the southern part of the country.
Shocking footage shows the roads turned into rivers as torrents of debris-filled mud swept away cars and trees.
Cars can be seen floating through the water as the strong currents crash around them, leaving locals and tourists alike trapped inside.
The Sol and Guadalhorce are among the worst-hit areas, and authorities are urging people not to leave their houses.
The Guadalhorce river rose last night and reached historic levels, although at the moment its level is falling, SUR news reports.
The extreme situation has sparked weather alerts as the region braces for even worse conditions.
Authorities said floodwaters at some places were “several meters in height”.
Locals and tourists have been advised to avoid unnecessary travel and to seek higher ground if in a flood-prone area.
Up to 120 litres of water per square metre could accumulate in just 12 hours because of torrential rain, according to the agency.
The country’s State Meteorological Agency has also issued an orange alert for rain in the regions of Ronda, Antequera and Axarquía.
Orange warnings are now in effect along the Granada coast and the Almería regions of Valle del Almanzora and Los Vélez.
Yellow warnings remain in place for the coast, Andévalo and Condado de Huelva, the entire province of Cádiz, and the Antequera area in Málaga, where a coastal alert is also in place.