Teresa Ribera, Minister of Ecological transition and first person responsible for the opinions of the Hydrological Confederation of Júcarhad up to nine flights available to return from Brussels after activating the State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) the “maximum red level” by DANA in the Valencian Community, on October 29. Ribera, however, remained in Brussels until Wednesday morning, after the tragedy, despite the fact that he had a wide air connection.
As reported by her office, the minister and also third vice-president of the Government was in Brussels on October 29, the fateful day of DANA which left at least 223 dead and dozens missingaddressing various questions related to his candidacy for the post of European Commissioner. From his team, they assure that Ribera “worked and was reachable at all times”. However, his refusal to immediately return to Spain is called into question, given the forecasts regarding DANA. Ribera’s agenda in Brussels It wasn’t public and only after criticism did his team reveal it, without going into excessive detail.
According to this information, the minister was dealing with issues related to her appointment as executive vice-president and European commissioner – for which she will be examined precisely this Tuesday – in addition to “various issues related to her ministry”.
Bank I was no stranger to alerts about DANA, as he revealed that this same October 29 at noon, he had already broadcast a message on his social networks in which he claimed to be “worried about alerts of Aemet” and asked for “the greatest caution” given the seriousness of the situation. The minister broadcast this message notably at 12:45 p.m.
He then met European parliamentarians, officials from the European Trade Union Confederation and the Directorate General for Competition.
From his office, they also assured that he had the opportunity to meet in Brussels the MEP and vice-president spokesperson of the European People’s Party group, Dolors Montserrat“with whom he spoke for a few minutes”, which the MEP denied popular.
Already 7:30 p.m.According to him, he repeatedly called the telephone number of the Valencian president, Carlos Mazón. But by then the situation was already on high alert.
Early warnings
At 07:36, Aemet has already broadcast the announcement of DANA in the Valencian Community on its social networks. “Active today and tomorrow. “Maximum red level,” warned the state agency, which, throughout the day, updated these warnings.
Ribera, however, has not changed his European program. As revealed by OKDIARIO, the day before, Monday, when there was already concern about precipitation in the Valencian Community, the minister was in Paris, participating in the meeting of the Friends of the Paris Agreement High-Level Dialogue. A small group of leaders met to discuss recent climate-related crises. Ribera was introduced in the event notes as “Executive Vice-President of the European Commission and gave a lecture in the afternoon on issues related to his European candidacy.
tragic Tuesday
Teresa Ribera went to Paris despite the fact that, on Sunday, Aemet had already published a first special note on DANA, which warned: “Tuesday the 29th, which peak day of this episode is expectedthe greatest probability of these intense precipitations will be in the Mediterranean peninsular area (less likely in Barcelona and Girona) and around the strait and, to a lesser extent, in the central and southern half. It is likely that the points in the Valencian Community and Murcia will exceed 150 mm in 24 hours.
He Mondaythe agency issued yet another special noticeinsisting that Tuesday would be “the peak day of this episodewith the highest probability of these intense precipitations and storms expected in the Strait area, eastern Andalusia, Murcia, eastern Castile-La Mancha and the Valencian Community. The agency also put forward accumulated quantities of “120 to 150 mm in 12 to 24 hours”.
It was from 7:30 p.m. that Ribera claims to have repeatedly called the telephone number of Valencia regional president Carlos Mazón, saying it took “four calls” to locate him. At that time, it must be remembered, Mazón was already present at the meeting of the emergency committee, Cecopi. The alert was already at maximum.
According to sources, Mazón did not respond to calls, but Ribera eventually managed to locate him through his chief of staff’s cell phone and “expressed his availability to help and his concern” over the threat of torrential rains during a brief conversation, after which the head of the Valencian executive “agreed to call her back, but this no longer happened”.
Then the minister participated electronically in the crisis committee formed on the very night of the 29th and took “the first available flight”, affirms his team, to return to Madrid, already on the 30th, at 7 a.m.
