The Madrid region was hit by a powerful hail storm on Monday evening, with heavy rainfall bringing roads to a standstill, causing problems on a number of lines on city’s underground Metro system and causing flight diversions at Barajas airport, Spain's influential newspaper El Pais reported.

Firefighters responded to more than a thousand call outs, most of them for minor issues such as fallen tree branches or flooding in garages and basements. Spain’s meteorological agency AEMET recorded more than 9,300 lightning strikes in six hours.

The municipality hardest hit by the storm was Arganda del Rey, located to the southeast of the capital, and where the hail fell particularly hard. The city is in a natural hollow, with mountains on either side, which contributed to flash flooding in three of its main streets.

The water was so strong that parked cars and street furniture were swept away by the current, El Pais reported.