Extreme rainfall has led to serious flooding in Spain: After the disaster with more than 95 deaths, the search for bodies, missing people and trapped people continued on Thursday. A debate about possible perpetrators has also begun. Was the warning about the mega-flood too late?
In some places, as much rain fell in one day as usual in a year. Now the scale of the destruction is becoming increasingly visible. In Sedaví in the particularly affected Mediterranean region of Valencia, where the sun is now shining again after heavy rain, bodies of water piled up cars and blocked the entrances to houses.
Affected person complains: “We have been given up”
Many residents were desperate. “We have been completely forgotten here,” said a man, half crying, in front of state television’s RTVE camera. “Nobody comes to move the cars or bring us anything. We have been given up.” People need food, clothing and shovels to be able to shovel away the mass of earth themselves.
The search for bodies, missing people and people cut off from the outside world continued all night. “However, due to the darkness, many activities have to be suspended until dawn,” said the head of the emergency department of the Spanish Red Cross, Iñigo Vila.
The city of Valencia before (left) and after (right) the flood:
Many people are still stuck
A spokesman for the Guardia Civil police unit estimated in the evening that 1,200 people were still trapped in cars, buses or trucks on the A3 and A7 motorways. But there were also many who did not want to leave their cars, it was said. According to this study, 5,000 vehicles – some abandoned by drivers and passengers – were stuck in Valencia. Many thousands of people have also been stuck in trains, houses, offices, schools and shopping centers since Tuesday evening.
City leaders criticize that the warning came too late
Although the full extent of the tragedy is not yet known and search and rescue efforts will continue for a long time, a debate has already begun in Spain about possible perpetrators. Discussions arose in the media and on the internet as to whether the authorities should have warned citizens earlier or better. There was corresponding criticism from several city hall bosses. After all, we know that the weather phenomenon ‘Dana’ or ‘cold drop’ is dangerous. It is more common in southern and eastern Spain in early autumn, when the first low reaches of the Atlantic Ocean push cold, moist air over the warm Mediterranean Sea.
Authority: “Brutal consequences” cannot be predicted
The regional government and experts rejected the accusations. Such “brutal consequences” cannot be predicted because they depend on several factors, respected meteorologist Francisco Martín León told the Europa Press news agency. The weather service Aemet provided sufficient and timely information with severe weather warnings of levels three (yellow), two (orange) and one (red).
Weather service speaks of ‘historic storm’
Tuesday’s extremely heavy rain caused rivers to burst their banks and streets to turn into rivers, especially in the Mediterranean regions of Valencia, Murcia and Andalusia, which are also very popular with tourists. The Castile-La Mancha region, further inland, was also affected. The weather service Aemet called it a “historic storm”, the worst of its kind in the Valencia region, where most deaths occurred.
Source: Krone
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