Spain floods: Valencia death toll mounts as EU offers help

Spain's heavy flood death toll has raised questions about the country's warning system meant to alert residents of impending extreme storms.

Torrential rains began at the beginning of the week, with the National weather agency AEMET launching a red alert for the hardest-hit eastern Valencia region on Tuesday morning.

Conditions deteriorated throughout the day, but it wasn't until the early evening that the regional body in charge of coordinating the emergency services was set up.

Subsequently, an alert sent by the civil protection service urging residents in the Mediterranean coastal city of Valencia not to leave home was issued after 8:00 pm (19:00 UTC).

But by that time it was already too late for many, as motorists trying to flee found themselves trapped on roads and left at the mercy of extreme quantities of water.

Local authorities have not yet commented on on the timing of the alerts or the delay in setting up the emergency response.

A total of 95 people are known to have died, 92 of them in the eastern Valencia region, during the floods. 

The body coordinating emergency services in Valencia released a new provisional death toll of 92 in a statement late on Wednesday. It also warned that bodies were still being recovered and identified. 

Two deaths in the Castilla-La-Mancha region and another in Andalusia have also been announced by the leaders of the respective regions. 

Spain's minister of regional affairs, Angel Victor Torres, told reporters that authorities were still not able to give a figure for the number of people missing or unaccounted for, but he said "there are many missing people."

"This shows the tremendous magnitude of this tragedy," Torres said. 

Spain is set to observe three days of mourning, a government minister said on Wednesday afternoon, as reports came in of an ever-rising death toll.

Angel Victor Torres, minister for territorial policy, told a news conference that Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez had spoken to King Felipe VI on Wednesday and informed him of the official days of mourning. 

He also announced that Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez will visit Valencia on Thursday.

The downpours have primarily affected the regions of Valencia, Castilla-La Mancha, and Andalusia. 

Wednesday's extreme rainfall appears to have been a particularly strong manifestation of a phenomenon common in the Mediterranean, especially in Spain.

Known as "La Gota Fria" (The Cold Drop), it involves the formation of isolated, cold air pockets at high altitudes coming from the north. These clash with warmer, humid air over the sea and coast — the mix of cold and moisture causing sudden precipitation.

The clash, also known in Spain by the acronym DANA (isolated depression at high altitudes), produces severe thunderstorms, torrential rainfall, and even flash floods.

The seasonal event tends to occur annually during the fall months of September to November and is particularly marked in certain areas, especially the Valencia region.

The phenomenon has become more extreme in recent years and weather services had been warning of a very strong DANA for days.

As well as affecting Valencia, this year the effects were also notable in the Andalucia and Castilla-La Mancha regions.

The German government has offered support to Spain after severe and deadly flooding, a government spokesman says.

"We are in direct contact with the Spanish government to see if support from Germany is needed for this terrible disaster," Steffen Hebestreit said.

Hebestreit said the German government and Chancellor Olaf Scholz are "deeply shocked."

At least 63 people have been killed by the flooding the worst disaster of its type in Europe since 230 people died in deadly floods in Germany and Belgium in 2021.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has urged citizens to remain cautious amid the ongoing emergency and said he would not "abandon" victims of the disaster.

He gave a special message to those whose family members and friends had gone missing after the devastating flash-flooding from rainstorms on Tuesday.

"For those who are looking for their loved ones, all of Spain feels your pain," Sanchez said in a televised address. "Our priority is to help you. We are putting all the resources necessary so that we can recover from this tragedy."

Spain’s King Felipe VI has voiced his desolation and worry about the situation in Valencia, Castilla-La Mancha, and Andalusia.

In a video posted on X, the platform formerly known as Twitter, the monarch said he had been in contact with local leaders, as well as Spain’s interior minister.

"The main thing is to express condolences and sadness for the loss of so many human lives. There has also been enormous destruction of infrastructure and material goods of very many people," said the king, speaking from the Gando Air Base in Gran Canaria. 

"There are still difficulties accessing some, therefore there is still no complete information about the impact, about the scope of the effects, including the possible victims."

"In any case, it reassures me that all available wherewithal is available to the authorities, to the emergency services."

At least 63 people have died in eastern Spain in the worst natural disaster to hit the country in recent memory.

Emergency services in the southeastern region of Valencia have confirmed a death toll of 62 people just after noon local time on Wednesday, up from 51 earlier in the day.

Meanwhile, the central government office for Castilla La Mancha region confirmed that an 88-year-old woman was found dead in Cuenca province.

The death toll appeared to be Europe's worst from flooding since 2021, when at least 185 people died in Germany.

The prime minister of Spain's Iberian neighbor Portugal, Luis Montenegro, expressed his country's "greatest regret" and "solidarity with all the Spanish people." 

In a message on X, he offered "all necessary help."

European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen says Brussels stands "ready to help" Spain in its moment of crisis.

"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."

A landslide triggered by the heavy rainfall caused a high-speed train with nearly 300 people on board to derail near Malaga on its way to Madrid.

Although were 291 passengers on board, rail officials said none were hurt.

Spain's national rail operator, RENFE, also said it had suspended all rail services in the Valencia region "until the situation returns to normal for the safety of passengers."

Among the routes affected were the high-speed train service between Valencia city and Madrid, plus several commuter lines.

Speaking from Spain, DW reporter Nicole Ris said the devastation wreaked by the floods had exacerbated the challenge facing rescuers.

"Communications have broken down, streets, and motorways have been washed away," said Ris. "Bridges are gone because of these masses of water."

"They're trying to rescue people with helicopters and you can imagine that, while this is effective, it's slower than being able to access via streets through the towns with vehicles. This really is a problem for them."

At least 52 people have been killed as a result of Spain's flash flooding, with all but one of the fatalities reported so far in the southeastern region of Valencia. 

The number is expected to rise after heavy rain left roads and towns under water.

The "provisional number of dead is at 51 people", Valencia's regional emergency services wrote on X, adding that bodies were still being recovered and identified.

The rains also claimed a life in the Spanish community of Castilla-La Mancha, where an 88-year-old woman has died in Mira in Cuenca province.

rc/lo (AFP, AP, dpa, Reuters)