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Last week, the region of Valencia, Spain, suffered from floods as a result of extreme weather conditions, leaving the population in a state of panic and devastation. Subsequently, on Oct. 4, authorities launched yellow and amber weather alerts across Valencia and Catalonia.
Military emergencies unit officers and nearly 10,000 police forces were dispatched in aiding
those trapped by the floods in shopping centers, underground parking lots, and on the streets. Despite the efforts to cope with the situation, the Valencian government, the Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez, Regional President Carlos Mazóm, King Felipe and Queen Letizia faced the outrage of the public for their delay in activating the emergency alert when the floods first hit on Tuesday, becoming targets to a plummet of mud and other objects.
On Oct. 4, heavy rain fell to the north in Barcelona. Due to the floods, authorities were forced to suspend commuter rail services and reroute flights.
According to CBS News, the Minister of Spanish Transport Óscar Puente announced that all commuter trains in the northeast of Catalonia would be suspended. Additionally, 15 flights operating at Barcelona’s airport had to be rerouted and as reported by the national airport operator, 50 had to be canceled on Monday.
So far, there have been 217 deaths recorded and 89 are missing.
An account by the name of DANA Desaparecidos has been created on different social media platforms, such as Instagram, consisting of an album with the pictures of those missing containing their descriptions, as well as the last time they were seen. Volunteers have also provided assistance in the search for the missing. Regardless of the efforts of the authorities, the
citizens have expressed their indignation for the deficient organization and slow responses to the crisis.
Although these kinds of storms have been said to be common along Spain's Mediterranean coast, the floods of this incident have resulted in the greatest destruction in recent history. The floods were three times as severe as those in 1957, which killed around 81 people, according to older residents of Paiporta, the tragedy's epicenter.
As reported by the national government, authorities had rescued more than 36,000 people, given electricity back to 147,000 residences, and given them almost 130,000 water bottles and 21,000 food rations. The search for the missing continues until now.
Isabella Hernandez is a Deputy News Editor. Email them at feedback@thegazelle.org.