Heavy storms on Tuesday triggered floods across parts of southern and eastern Spain. Footage shared on social media showed vehicles being swept away down streets by the mud-coloured water.
More than 1,000 soldiers from Spain’s emergency response units were deployed to affected areas and the central government set up a crisis committee to help coordinate rescue efforts.
Emergency services in Valencia urged citizens to avoid any kind of road travel and to follow further updates from official sources.
At least 62 people have died in the floods, Valencia’s regional government said in a statement on Wednesday. Another two deaths were reported in the neighbouring Castilla La Mancha region.
Carlos Mazon, the regional leader of Valencia, told a news conference that some people remained isolated in inaccessible locations.
“If [emergency services] have not arrived, it’s not due to a lack of means or predisposition, but a problem of access,” Mazon said, adding that reaching certain areas was “absolutely impossible”.
The elderly were also the most vulnerable. National broadcaster RTVE showed a video of a nursing home with several seniors in chairs and wheelchairs with waters rising over their knees as staff struggled to ensure their safety.
Elsewhere, an elderly couple were rescued from the upper story of their house by a military unit using a bulldozer, with three soldiers accompanying them in the huge shovel.
Ricardo Gabaldon, the mayor of Utiel, a town in Valencia, told RTVE that “yesterday was the worst day of my life.” Several people were still missing in his town.
“We were trapped like rats. Cars and trash containers were flowing down the streets. The water was rising to three meters,” he said.
Spain will observe three days of mourning from Thursday, Angel Victor Torres, minister for territorial policy and democratic memory has announced.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez spoke with King Felipe VI on Wednesday and informed him of the official days of mourning, Torres told a news conference.
The death toll has appeared to be the worst in Europe from flooding since 2021 when at least 185 people died in Germany. It is also the deadliest flood-related disaster in Spain since 1996, when 87 people died near a town in the Pyrenees mountains.
Sanchez has said the government “would not abandon” those affected by the floods
“All of Spain weeps with all of you. Our absolute priority is to help you… We won’t abandon you,” he said in a televised address.
King Felipe VI said he was “devastated” by the loss of life and thanked emergency services for their response. The monarchy also offered “heartfelt condolences” to families of the victims.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said the European Union was “ready to help” with rescue efforts.
“What we are seeing is devastating,” von der Leyen told a news conference. “We have activated our Copernicus satellite system to help coordinate the rescue teams, and we have already offered to activate our civil protection mechanism.”
Meteorologists have said a year’s worth of rain had fallen in the space of eight hours in parts of Valencia, battering farms in a region responsible for almost two-thirds of citrus fruit grown in Spain, one of the globe’s top producers.
State weather agency AEMET declared a red alert on Tuesday in Valencia, a leading citrus-growing region, with some areas such as Turis and Utiel recording 200mm (7.9 inches) of rainfall.
It said the rain had since stopped but said that Castellon in the north of the region would remain on orange alert until 2pm (13:00 GMT).
Trains to the cities of Madrid and Barcelona were cancelled due to the flooding, and schools and other essential services were suspended in the worst-hit areas.
Spain’s state-owned railway Renfe said a high-speed train with 291 passengers on board travelling from Malaga to Madrid derailed shortly after departure due to a landslide. No injuries have been reported.
Lower house Speaker Francina Armengol said Wednesday’s parliamentary session would be called off because of the disaster.
Scientists have warned heavy rainfall events have become more frequent and intense worldwide, largely due to climate change. Human activities such as urban development, deforestation, and inadequate infrastructure are also known to increase flood risks.
