Spain: Over 70 Dead and Many Missing in Devastating Floods (Updated Toll)
Catastrophic floods have resulted in the deaths of more than 70 people in southeastern Spain from Tuesday night into Wednesday, with numerous individuals still reported missing.
The latest provisional toll reports 72 fatalities, including 70 in the heavily affected Valencia region and an additional two in the neighboring Castile-La Mancha region.
This number is expected to increase as rescuers continue their search for many missing persons, which could number in the dozens. Earlier reports indicated at least 62 dead.
Rainfall subsided on Wednesday in Utiel and the Valencia region; however, unprecedented precipitation from the previous day and night left many towns in utter chaos, leaving tens of thousands of residents without electricity and cut off from the outside world.
Although heavy rains were anticipated on Tuesday, prompting the national meteorological agency (Aemet) to issue a red alert, the storms struck with such intensity and suddenness that many residents had no time to seek shelter.
In Chiva, a small town in the Valencia hinterland, 491 liters of rain per square meter fell in just eight hours—equivalent to a year’s worth of rainfall, according to Aemet, which described these accumulations as “extraordinary.”
The government has declared three days of national mourning beginning Thursday. King Felipe VI expressed his sorrow over this tragedy in a message on social media.
Among the hardest-hit municipalities are L’Alcudia in the Valencia region and Letur in the neighboring province of Albacete (Castile-La Mancha region), where six people are reported missing after flash flooding inundated streets and swept away vehicles.
“The situation is horrific… I have never seen anything like this,” stated Consuelo Tarazona, the mayor of Horno de Alcedo, a suburb of Valencia, during an interview with TVE. She described the rapid rise of water as “monstrous,” adding, “We were flooded all at once, without any ability to warn our neighbors.”
Valencia’s city hall announced that all schools would remain closed on Wednesday and that all sporting events were canceled. Several flights scheduled to depart from or arrive at Valencia Airport were either rerouted or canceled, according to Spanish airport operator Aena.
The national rail infrastructure operator Adif suspended train services between Madrid and Valencia for the entire day on Wednesday due to the storm’s impact on major points of the rail network.
