Quotes
For those who at this moment are still looking for their loved ones, the whole of Spain weeps with you. To the villages and cities destroyed by this tragedy, I say the same: Together, we will rebuild your streets, your squares, your bridges."
In a televised address, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said
Severe weather and flooding is affecting many areas of Southern and Eastern Spain, particularly the Valencia region and Castilla La Mancha. Journeys may be affected. Check the latest weather warnings from Spain’s meteorological office before you travel and follow instructions from local authorities."
The full advice on the floods read
Yesterday was the worst day of my life,
Ricardo Gabaldón, the mayor of Utiel, a town in Valencia, told national broadcaster RTVE
The neighborhood is destroyed, all the cars are on top of each other, it’s literally smashed up,
Christian Viena, a bar owner in the Valencian village of Barrio de la Torre, said by phone
For those who are looking for their loved ones, all of Spain feels your pain,
Sánchez said in a televised addressThere are bodies and bodies continuing to appear in places we hadn’t been able to access before."
President of Carlos Mazon - another region in Valencia - said today
We’re going to lend a hand and help those who can’t get into their homes or who are looking for relatives or friends or loved ones,
he added
We mustn’t let our guard down because the weather front is still wreaking havoc and we can’t say that this devastating episode is over,
he saidIf [emergency services] have not arrived, it’s not due to a lack of means or predisposition, but a problem of access,
Mazon said,
What we are seeing is devastating,
von der Leyen told a news conferenceAll of Spain weeps with all of you. Our absolute priority is to help you… We won’t abandon you,
he said in a televised addressWe were trapped like rats. Cars and trash containers were flowing down the streets. The water was rising to three meters,
he saidWe can finally see flashing blue lights so people do know where we are,
Mr Farafonov saidIt was mayhem as we counted nine or 10 overturned lorries on a half-mile stretch of the motorway. We've never seen anything like it."
Mr Farafonov described the horrific scenes he saw, telling Sky NewsThe priority is to find these people,
she said
Provisionally, the number of fatalities is 51 people,
local authorities said Wednesday
Communications have broken down, streets, and motorways have been washed away,
said Ris
I am closely following with concern the reports on missing persons and the damage caused by the storm in recent hours,
Spain’s prime minister, Pedro Sánchez, wrote on X, urging people to follow the advice of the authorities
These are very difficult hours for relatives and for the disappeared,
said Carlos MazónThe initial toll logged by different police and emergency services puts the provisional number of victims at 51 people. We are beginning the process of recovering and identifying the victims.”
The Valencian government’s emergency coordination centre said