Spain: Over 150 dead in catastrophic flooding in Valencia. Search for missing.

Spain is experiencing days of mourning and great concern over the violent storm that has hit Valencia, Castile-La Mancha, and Andalusia. In less than twenty-four hours, between Tuesday afternoon and Wednesday morning, unprecedented flooding has caused at least 158 ​​deaths and dozens of missing people, while the number of displaced people has exceeded 120.000. The meteorological phenomenon, caused by the isolated high-altitude depression (known as Dana), has triggered flash floods and landslides that have swept away homes, vehicles and infrastructure. Experts predict two more days of heavy rain and warn that the danger is not entirely over. Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has visited the affected areas, urging citizens to exercise maximum caution and stay in their homes.

Origin and dynamics of the storm Dana

The storm, classified as Dana, is a particular atmospheric depression that forms when an area of ​​cold air isolates itself at high altitude, generating a vortex that causes strong thunderstorms and long-lasting rainfall. This phenomenon occurred on Tuesday, when a cold front met a front of warm and humid air over eastern Spain, causing a series of violent downpours. The amount of rain that fell is impressive: in just eight hours, some areas of Valencia received up to 490 millimeters of rain, equal to the average amount for an entire year. This triggered floods that affected not only Valencia, but also several cities in Castile-La Mancha and Andalusia, with disastrous consequences.

Spain's State Meteorological Agency (Aemet) has raised the weather alert for six autonomous communities, including Catalonia, Aragon, and the Valencian Community, maintaining an orange level, the second on a scale of three. Other regions, such as Castilla y León, Extremadura, and Ceuta, remained at a yellow alert level. The maximum red alert was lifted on Wednesday morning for the province of Castellón, while authorities continue to monitor the evolution of the storm, which is expected to move west in the coming days.

Rescue operations and mobilization of authorities

The Spanish government has rapidly mobilized resources to deal with the crisis. More than 250 soldiers from the Army Emergency Unit have been deployed to assist displaced people and clear roads of mud and debris, while civil protection has coordinated evacuation operations in several locations. Rescue teams, equipped with helicopters and trained dogs, have evacuated more than 70 people by air and another XNUMX by land, many of whom were stranded in their homes or on the roofs of their cars. The work of rescuers is hampered by the difficulty of accessing rural and mountainous areas, many of which are still submerged in mud or cut off by landslides. Defense Minister Margarita Robles has expressed concern about the increase in casualties, noting that several bodies were found inside vehicles trapped in flooded roads.

Pedro Sánchez said that the government, during the next Council of Ministers, will declare Valencia and other affected areas as natural disaster zones, thus allowing access to the extraordinary funds needed for reconstruction. Sánchez called on the population to limit travel and follow the instructions of local authorities, especially in view of the upcoming holiday weekend, to prevent further incidents. He also thanked European countries for their support and assured that funds from the European Commission will also be used to deal with the emergency.

Roads, railways and infrastructures in chaos

The consequences of the flood are being felt throughout the country's infrastructure system. Water and mud have blocked more than 119 regional roads and motorways, preventing traffic in many areas of southeastern Spain. In many urban centres, such as Paiporta and Castellón, drinking water and electricity supplies have been cut off since Tuesday. The Mediterranean motorway corridor, which connects Catalonia to the southern region of Spain, has been closed in several sections, while high-speed rail links between Madrid and Valencia remain suspended, causing enormous disruption to mobility.

The province of Castellón, in the north of Valencia, is one of the most affected areas: here many roads are completely submerged, and many residents have been forced to seek refuge in schools and hotels made available by the authorities. Schools, which also serve as temporary reception centers, have been closed in several municipalities and hundreds of people are waiting to be freed from vehicles or homes where they are stuck.

Looting in affected areas

Police forces have also had to deal with incidents of looting in flooded areas. In the last few hours, 39 people have been arrested for taking advantage of the confusion caused by the storm to commit thefts in shopping centers and stores in the province of Valencia. Among the places most affected are the Bonaire shopping center, in the municipality of Aldaia, and the MN4 in Alfafar, residential areas of tens of thousands of inhabitants. The government has declared zero tolerance for this behavior, intensifying controls in the damaged areas.

A Year's Rain in a Few Hours: The Environmental Impact

The intensity of the rainfall and the speed with which the Dana storm unleashed transformed rivers and streams into unstoppable torrents. A witness in Paiporta said he miraculously survived after being stuck on the roof of his car for four hours, surrounded by water that reached his knees. Here, a retirement home was engulfed by water: among the victims were two Guardia Civil officers and several elderly people, surprised by the fury of the flood during dinner.

The environmental impact of the flood is devastating, with entire rural areas submerged by debris, crops destroyed and severe damage to river ecosystems. Authorities are assessing the extent of the damage, which will require years of work to restore natural and agricultural resources.

Emergency management and political controversies

Controversies over the management of the emergency have erupted since the first hours of the crisis. In particular, the president of the Valencian Community, Carlos Mazón, has been criticized for the alleged delays in the alert, accused of having underestimated the risk until the emergency was already evident. The red alert had been launched by the Aemet on Tuesday morning, but the urgent message from the Civil Protection to the citizens arrived only at 20:03 pm, when the flooding was already underway. Mazón responded by defending the actions of the authorities, declaring that the alerts had been sent since Sunday and that "there will be time to discuss the controversies, but now it is necessary to focus on relief". He also allocated 250 million euros for immediate aid to the affected populations, stressing the priority of ensuring safety and a return to normality.

International solidarity and the Pope's intervention

The wave of solidarity has come from all over the world: the Pope has expressed his closeness to the Spanish citizens and sent a message of comfort to the families of the victims. European countries have also offered assistance and resources to help Spain face this emergency.