The death toll has risen to 95 following the flash floods that swept southern and eastern Spain, stretching from Malaga to Valencia while dozens are reported to be missing. On Tuesday, torrential rain triggered flash floods which swept away bridges and buildings and forced people to climb on the roofs or cling to trees to survive.
According to the Associated Press (AP), muddy torrents tumbled vehicles down streets at high speeds while debris and household items floated in the water. Rescue workers and the police used helicopters to lift people stranded on the roofs of their homes, and rubber boats to reach the drivers atop cars.
Rescue personnel and more than 1,100 soldiers from Spain’s emergency response units were deployed to affected areas.
“When the water started to rise, it came as a wave,” said Guillermo Serrano Perez told BBC. “It was like a tsunami,” a 21-year-old from Paiporta, near Valencia, is one of the thousands of people who were affected by the flash flood.
According to BBC, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez declared three days of national mourning as the extreme conditions continue to restrict rescue efforts. In his national address on Wednesday, Sanchez urged citizens to remain vigilant and pledged a full recovery, telling victims: “The whole of Spain weeps with you… we won’t abandon you.”
Several videos shared on social media overnight showed people trapped by the floodwaters and some climbing on trees to avoid themselves from being swept away. In these videos rescue workers transporting women in a bulldozer's bucket. Other showed firefighters rescuing drivers whose cars were stranded in flooded streets in Alzira town, AFP noted.
Several videos also showed cars scattered and piled on top of each other on roads near the Mediterranean coastal city of Valencia after a landslide. Locals were seen trying to clear the sludge from their homes with buckets after the flooding. They were seen wading through waist-high waters to save whatever they could from their belongings.
According to AP, Spain’s national weather service said it rained more in 8 hours in Valencia than it had in the preceding 20 months, calling the deluge “extraordinary.”