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By Letara Draghia •
Updated: 30 Oct 2024 • 10:23 • 3 minutes read
Valencia, Spain, has experienced severe flooding due to a DANA (isolated depression at high levels), leaving at least 51 people dead and causing widespread chaos across eastern Spain.
The Civil Guard confirmed the deaths, with towns including Torrent, Paiporta, and Chiva among the worst hit. The president of Valencia, Carlos Mazón, referred to the tragedy as involving “multiple deaths” but noted that the exact number is still being verified. “Lifeless bodies have been found, but out of respect for the families we are not going to give any more details.”
Floods in Valencia trapping residents
The flooding, described as an “unprecedented phenomenon” by Spain s Defence Minister Margarita Robles, has trapped dozens of residents. Many spent the night on the roofs of cars, shops, and petrol stations, awaiting rescue. At least 50 people remain trapped in the Bonaire shopping centre in Aldaia, according to municipal sources, after the Barranc de la Saleta overflowed, causing significant flooding.
The Spanish Military are rescuing victims from the floods in Valencia
More than 1,000 employees from the Spanish Military Emergency Unit (UME) have been deployed. In Letur, Albacete, the Army is also involved in search operations for six missing individuals after the area was hit by severe downpours.
In Cullera, Valencia, the Júcar River has overflowed, prompting evacuations in areas including Való, Pegunta, and Marenyet. The local council issued a warning urging residents to stay at home, remove vehicles from near the river, and avoid unnecessary travel. Many areas, including schools, health centres, and sports facilities, remain closed until further notice. Places have been made available in the Benimaclet shelter for homeless people and in the Social Emergency Centre on Calle Santa Cruz de Tenerife.
Emergency SMS alerts on mobile phones have also been issued to avoid travel throughout the Valencia province.
Personal accounts of the floods in Valencia
Cadena SER aired the testimony of a young man who spent the night trapped in the Silla funeral home, along with 20 others, after floodwaters rose suddenly while he was driving through an industrial estate. “We had to break down the door to get in when the water was rising,” he explained, adding that they found refuge on the second floor as the ground level filled with over a metre of water.
In a town called Cheste, cars were pictured piled up and floating along a road that has essentially turned into a river. One resident, Gemma M, described it as “chaos everywhere”.
Travel disruptions due to the floods in Valencia
Train services have been suspended, and roads have been cut off across Valencia, Teruel, Albacete, and other regions, as emergency services strive to bring the situation under control.
According to Renfe, all commuter train services in Valencia, including lines to Gandía, Moixent, Utiel, and Castellón, have been halted. In addition, high-speed rail services to Madrid have been suspended pending reassessment.
Eurocontrol, the European air traffic control agency, also reported flight disruptions affecting Spanish airports, including Madrid, Barcelona, and Valencia.
The General Directorate of Traffic (DGT) is urging people to avoid driving in Valencia due to road closures. Major roads, including sections of the A-3 and A-7, as well as several local routes, have been blocked by flooding. The Valencian Government s Emergency Coordination Centre (CEE) has also launched an Es-Alert mobile civil protection alert, urging residents to stay off the roads.
The Insurance Compensation Consortium has stated that they are prepared to begin working on claims for damages as soon as it is safe to do so.
The extreme weather has impacted not only Spain’s airports but also other major airports across Europe. Eurocontrol has warned of flight disruptions in London, Heathrow, Frankfurt, Zurich, Brussels and Paris, affecting both inbound and outbound flights.
The flooding and ongoing extreme weather serve as a reminder of the dangers of climate change, which has increasingly been linked to severe weather events throughout Europe.
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