‘Tsunami-like force’ flash floods swept through towns and cities in the Valencia region last night, leaving at least 95 dead and with scores missing. Thousands were caught off guard by the torrent waters which swept through streets Tuesday night, even given hours of advance warning that came from Spain’s Aemet meteorological agency’s alerts issued Monday morning. A “maximum red alert” had sounded an extreme danger warning from torrential rains, but the rapid rise of the floodwaters left little time to react.
Rising Waters and Escapes
Guillermo Serrano Pérez, 21, from Paiporta, described his experience on the motorway with his family. They barely escaped by leaving their car and climbing to higher ground. He described the flooding as coming in waves, with water levels rising alarmingly fast. Others, including Paco, were flooded victims on the roads of Valencia. “I was able to escape from my car but the current pinned me up against a fence rips off my clothes under the pressure,” he recounts.
Severe Warnings Issued
Early warnings from Aemet began to appear on Tuesday morning, followed by repeated messages during the day, advising people to avoid riversides and seek shelter. During the afternoon, rivers overflowed, streets in La Fuente and Utiel became raging torrents, and towns like Chiva were overwhelmed by the approaching water. Still, it was at 20:00 that an official civil protection alert was issued asking people to stay away from roads, which many interpreted as too late for them.
Level of Damage
A neighbor died from a heart attack during the night in Rut Moyano’s community in Benetússer, which resident Rut Moyano recorded as the desperate scene. Posts on social media captured the chaos throughout the region: wheelchair-bound residents of Paiporta remained trapped in knee-deep brown floodwater at a local care home. As daylight broke, it confirmed how terrible things were, from mountains of cars to business establishments covered in mud, and people narrating their experience with cars swept off the roads and litter-filled streets.
Rescue operations and people rescued
The emergency services were put under extreme pressure with access routes in some places only being accessible on foot. Juliano Sánchez clung to palm trees in Valencia for seven hours before the waters could take him away. He explained of his experience: “I did not want to die.”
With dozens still missing, the region is preparing for a protracted recovery process. It has left behind communities struggling to rebuild and mourn loved ones lost in one of the most sudden and severe flood events recently.
