Spain floods latest: Frantic search for ‘many missing people’ as deaths set to rise and new storm forecast
Death toll continues to rise after worst flash floods in three decades swept Spanish region of Valencia
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Your support makes all the difference.Spanish emergency services are continuing their desperate search for survivors following devastating flash flooding, as many of those affected are warned to expect more torrential rain today.
Authorities fear that the death toll is set to rise from the 95 already killed as dozens of people in eastern and southern Spain remain missing.
Torrential rain – amounting to a year’s worth in just eight hours in some areas – inundated cities such as Valencia and Malaga, many found themselves “trapped like rats” in their homes and cars, surrounded by rapidly rising floodwaters.
Valencia has now been declared a “disaster zone” by Spanish prime minister Pedro Sanchez, who announced the measure as he visited some of the worst affected areas on Thursday.
Many affected are preparing for more extreme weather, as Spain’s meteorological service Aemet issued a series of fresh warnings - including the most severe kind - for Thursday.
Red alerts have been issued for the province of Castellon, which is expected to see up to 180mm of rain in 12 hours.
Have you been affected by this? Get in touch at athena.stavrou@independent.co.uk.
In pics: Aftermath of the flooding in Spain
Death toll expected to rise as still ‘many missing people'
At least 95 people have been confirmed dead since flash floods devestated eastern Spain, with more expected to come.
Emergency services are continuing to search for the dozens of people still missing in the regions affected, with more rain on the way.
Government minister Angel Victor Torres told Spanish broadcaster TVE that the death toll is likely to rise because “there are many missing people”.
Climate crisis ‘worsened all 10 deadliest weather events'
Climate change made the 10 deadliest extreme weather events over the past two decades worse, contributing to the deaths of more than 570,000 people, scientists have said.
Climate scientists said the finding “underscores how dangerous extreme weather events have already become” with just 1.3C of global warming above pre-industrial levels.
It also highlights the urgency of cutting the greenhouse gas emissions driving rising temperatures and more extreme weather, they said, as the world is currently on track for 3C of warming by the end of the century – a level recently described by UN chief Antonio Guterres as “catastrophic”.
More here.
Climate change ‘worsened all 10 deadliest weather events in past two decades’
The deadliest weather events since 2004 caused more than 570,000 deaths and the ‘fingerprints’ of climate change were present, scientists say.
Tourists in Spain warned of heavy rain, lightning and hail
Half-term holidaymakers have been warned by the Met Office to expect heavy rain in Spain’s east coast tourist destinations this week.
The national meteorological service said that a risk of “significant flash flooding”, “frequent lightning” and “large hail” will continue through to the end of the week following heavy showers and thunderstorms.
The Met Office said: “Torrential rain and thunderstorms could bring flash flooding, landslides and significant disruption to parts of eastern Spain this week.
“A further 250-350mm of rain is possible by the weekend in a few places - the average for the whole of October is closer to 50-100mm!”
More here.
Tourists in Spain warned of heavy rain, lightning and hail after deadly flash floods
The Met Office forecast up to 350mm of rain in some areas after 51 died during flash floods in Valencia
Full report: More than 90 dead after torrential rain brings flash flooding to Spain
Flash floods turned streets into rivers, destroyed homes, and killed at least 95 people in Spain’s worst natural disaster in recent memory.
Torrential rainstorms hit southern and eastern parts of the country, including the Costa del Sol region, where the city of Malaga is located, and Valencia in the east.
Rescuers waded through mud-coloured water while cars and vans appeared stranded. More than 1,000 soldiers from Spain’s emergency response units have been deployed to the worst-hit areas.
More than 90 dead after torrential rain brings flash flooding to Spain
‘We were trapped like rats. Cars were flowing down the streets’
Spainish town records one year’s worth of rain in hours
The town of Chiva, west of Valencia province, recorded 491 mm of rain in just eight hours, almost equalling a year’s worth, according to Spain’s weather service.
Flash floods in Spain turned village streets into rivers, ruined homes, disrupted transportation and killed at least 95 people in the worst natural disaster to hit the country in decades.
Nearly 155,000 homes were without electricity in Valencia, according to the energy minister.“All of Spain weeps with all of you... We won’t abandon you,” prime minister Pedro Sanchez told victims and their families in a televised address.
The disaster could not be considered over and “we will deploy all the necessary resources for as long as necessary so that we can recover from this tragedy,” he added.
ICYMI: British man, 71, killed in floods
A 71-year-old British man has been confirmed as one of the casualties of the flash floods.
President of the Andalusian government, Juanma Morena, said the man had died in hospital hours after being rescued from his home on the outskirts of Alhaurín de la Torre, Málaga.
He added that he was suffering from hypothermia and died after suffering several cardiac arrests.
Spain’s flooding another nasty hit in a fall where climate extremes just keep coming
Even for an era of more extreme weather, this autumn has seemingly shifted into yet another gear, especially in a rain-weary Europe where massive and deadly flooding in Spain‘s Valencia region is the latest incarnation.
At least 95 people have been killed in flooding that sent cars piling up like flotsam on the beach, while an ocean away much of the United States bakes through a nearly rain-free October that has created a flash drought.
Scientists trying to explain what’s happening, especially with a spate of deadly European downpours, see two likely connections to human-caused climate change. One is that warmer air holds and then dumps more rain. The other is possible changes in the jet stream — the river of air above land that moves weather systems across the globe — that spawn extreme weather.
More here.
Spain's horrific flooding another nasty hit in a fall where climate extremes just keep coming
The deadly flooding in Valencia Spain is just the latest in a spate of climate extremes that seem to have shifted into overdrive, especially in rain-weary Europe
Spain floods: Driver clings to car roof as water surges through roads
Death toll expected to rise in Spain
Spanish authorities fear the death toll will rise with other regions of Spain yet to report victims and search efforts continuing in hard-to-reach places.
“We are facing a very difficult situation,” minister of territory policies Angel Víctor Torres said.
“The fact that we can’t give a number of the missing persons indicates the magnitude of the tragedy.”
Spain has experienced similar autumn storms in recent years. Nothing, however, compared to the devastation over the last two days, which recalls floods in Germany and Belgium in 2021 in which 230 people were killed.
Rescue personnel and more than 1,100 soldiers from Spain’s emergency response units were deployed to affected areas. Spain’s central government set up a crisis committee to coordinate rescue efforts.
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