Emergency services have found several bodies in the Valencia region of eastern Spain, where torrential rains caused flooding, the head of the regional government announced on Wednesday (October 30). “We can confirm that some bodies have already been found”Carlos Mazón told the media, adding that authorities could not give more details until the families have been informed.
Authorities reported on Tuesday that seven people were missing, including one in L’Alcudia, in the Valencian Community, and six in the town of Letur, in the neighboring province of Albacete (Castilla-La Mancha), where a flash flood invaded the streets. It swept away cars and flooded buildings, according to images broadcast by Spanish television networks.
The emergency services, supported by drones, are working all night to search for the missing in Letur, according to what the delegate of the central government in Castilla-La Macha, Milagros Tolón, told public television TVE. “The priority is to find missing people”he added. Police in the town of L’Alcudia, in the eastern region of Valencia, said they were searching for a truck driver who had been missing since Tuesday afternoon.
The central government created a crisis unit, which met for the first time on Tuesday night. “I follow with concern the information about missing people and the damage caused by the storm in recent hours”wrote the President of the Government, Pedro Sánchez, in X, inviting the population to follow the advice of the authorities. “Be very careful and avoid unnecessary trips”he added.
Train derailment
Valencia City Council announced that all schools would remain closed on Wednesday, as would public gardens, and that all sporting events would be cancelled. Twelve flights that were due to land at Valencia airport were diverted to other cities in Spain due to heavy rain and strong winds, Spanish airport operator Aena said. Ten other flights scheduled to depart or arrive at the airport were cancelled.
The national railway infrastructure operator, Adif, said it had suspended high-speed trains between Madrid and Valencia due to the effects of the storm on the main points of the railway network. A high-speed train carrying 276 passengers derailed in the southern region of Andalusia, but no one was injured, the regional government said in a statement.
Emergency services rescued dozens of people in Álora, Andalusia, some by helicopter, after a river overflowed.
The national meteorological agency, Aemet, declared a red alert in the Valencia region and the second highest alert level in some parts of Andalusia. Several roads were closed in both regions due to flooding.
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Record
The Valencian Community and the Spanish Mediterranean coast in general periodically experience, in autumn, the meteorological phenomenon of the “cold drop”, an isolated depression at high altitude that causes sudden and extremely violent rains that sometimes last for several days. .
Scientists warn that extreme weather events, such as heat waves and storms, are becoming more intense due to climate change.
