The flood that caused the most catastrophic DANA of the 21st century devastated more than 60 villages in Valencia and left in its wake 199 dead and 93 missing, according to the latest provisional figures offered by the Data Integration Center (CID) . One of the most affected towns was Aldaia, where the Bonaire Shopping Centerone of the most important in Spain and which became a key point of the tragedy.
As ABC exclusively reported on Sunday, November 3, rescue teams did not find any bodies in the underground parking lot, which has 1,800 spaces. An operational complex made up of members of the Military Emergency Unit (UME) and Army sappers, as well as firefighters from various regions of Spain, managed to evacuate all the water from the lower parking lot and certified that There was no death inside..
Good news amid the devastating situation experienced by the province of Valencia, which, at the same time, has had to face multiple hoaxes and fake news which circulated on social networks, which even indicated that the parking lot had a second floor or that there were a certain number of tickets which were not validated that evening, both extremes being completely uncertain.
Indeed, the Bonaire shopping center, as this newspaper learned, The flood protocol was activated at 7:55 p.m. which consists of two fundamental tasks: evacuating the parking lot and transferring employees and users to a safe elevated area. In this case it was the hall and rooms of Cinesa, where they spent the night due to the danger of being exposed to the elements. In this regard, it is a plan that has two exercises per yearboth due to flooding and possible fires and terrorist attacks.
According to the same information, the shopping complex received no notice due to an extreme risk of flooding and its protocol was activated fifteen minutes before the massive alert was sent to all cell phones in the province of Valencia. Thus, from Bonaire, it is specified that the activity at that time in its facilities was “very low” and that even “some stores had already closed their doors hours before”.
Regarding the evacuation of the underground parking lot, the company that owns the shopping center emphasizes that “it was so fast that they were not sure that people could not have stayed inside.” However, the extensive rescue work carried out by the displaced professional troops made it possible to rule out, after several days inside the parking lot, that there were no deaths.
At the same time, regarding a possible reopening, Bonaire cannot specify the date on which its stores will operate again and even if will gradually openbecause there are areas more affected than others. In the shopping center, a first phase of assessment of internal damage has begun, which cannot yet be quantified, while “possible avenues of assistance and service to citizens” are also being studied, focused on the recovery of the environment and populations affected by the storm.
