Some 1,000 Spanish troops, alongside police and firefighters, have begun searching through debris in the Valencia region after massive floods killed at least 95 people and left many others missing in Spain’s southeast.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who has called three days of national mourning, headed to the region on Thursday (October 30).
On Thursday, he urged residents of the regions hit hardest by the floods in a generation to stay home.
“Please, stay at home … follow the calls of the emergency services … right now the most important thing is to save as many lives as possible,” Sanchez told residents of the provinces of Valencia and Castellon.
The disaster was the deadliest of its kind in the country since 1973, with up to a year’s rain falling in the region in a matter of hours.
Scientists have warned that such extreme weather events are becoming more intense, longer and more frequent because of human-induced climate change.
Power outages, no drinking water
On Thursday morning, tens of thousands of homes still lacked electricity and drinking water, while hundreds of cars and trucks swept along by the water masses littered the streets.
Authorities said Paiporta, in the Valencia suburbs, suffered the most deaths, with about 40 people falling victim to the floods.
Six of those who died there were in a home for the elderly, Spanish broadcaster RTVE said.
Officials in the Valencia region, where at least 92 were killed, said survivors were being sheltered in temporary accommodation such as fire stations. They said, however, that the death toll in the region will rise as more bodies are found.
Two women died in the Castilla-La Mancha region southeast of Madrid also died, while a British national was killed in Andalusia.
Condolences from PM, king
Sanchez expressed his condolences in a televised address on Wednesday, saying “All of Spain weeps with all of you … We won’t abandon you.”
He said the disaster could not be considered over and that “we will deploy all the necessary resources for as long as necessary so that we can recover from this tragedy.”
King Felipe VI said he was “devastated” by the disaster and offered “heartfelt condolences” to families of the victims.
Valencia regional government chief Carlos Mazon has rejected criticism that the population was warned too late about the coming floods, saying alerts were issued as early as Sunday.
The regional government had been criticised for not sending out flood warnings to people’s mobile phones until 8:00 pm on Tuesday, when flooding in some areas had already begun.
This article was originally published on DW.
