Photos Show Devastation of Beloved Spanish Tourist City After Record Floods
Videos across social media show the devastation wrought by record flooding which hit Valencia, Spain on Oct. 29. Per the BBC, at least 95 people have lost their lives due to the extreme weather event. Reuters reported that it was the country’s deadliest flood in over 30 years, while meteorologists explained that a year’s worth of rain fell on Valencia within eight hours on Tuesday.
"It's a river that came through," Denis Hlavaty told the outlet. He waited to be rescued from the deluge while sitting on a high ledge inside of a gas station. "The doors were torn away and I spent the night there, surrounded by water that was 2 meters (6.5 feet) deep."
I’m back in Canada visiting family. But my home in Valencia, Spain is facing massive flooding now. More than 62 people dead so far. It’s horrific. Some videos people have sent me privately via WhatsApp. pic.twitter.com/AFeG1yj6ql
— Duane Storey (@DuaneStorey) October 30, 2024
The flooding led to citywide devastation, piling cars in the street on its way to felling bridges and buildings. Much of the farmland in Valencia, where roughly two-thirds of Spain’s citrus fruit is grown, was destroyed in the flood. One unbelievable video shows a tidal wave rushing between homes in a residential community. Another taken on a busy highway shows water rushing through traffic, submerging cars and sending terrified passengers onto their hoods.
???????????? DEVASTATING: Catastrophic flooding in Valencia,Spain
— Julie Jolie (@juliejolie_) October 30, 2024
20 inches (491mm) of rainfall in Chiva in only 8 hours
One year's worth of rain in less than 24 hours??
At least 72 killed numbers expected to rise pic.twitter.com/cgMHfWD8hQ
Heart wrenching images coming out of Valencia today ???? pic.twitter.com/4mpJ69Fq64
— Volcaholic ???? (@volcaholic1) October 30, 2024
More than 1,000 soldiers from the country’s emergency response team were sent to the regions within Valencia to rescue stranded citizens. They shared a video showing the rescue of people in flooded streets and stranded on rooftops.
Medios del Batallón de Helicópteros de Emergencia #BHELEME del @EjercitoTierra se han incorporado a las labores de búsqueda y rescate con tres ???? Cougar y dos ???? EC-135 #JuntosSomosMásFuertes???? #DANA pic.twitter.com/0XWOHZ7ttk
— UME (@UMEgob) October 30, 2024
In one particularly harrowing clip, residents of a nursing home—many of them in wheelchairs—can be seen sitting in the flooded rec room in waist-high water waiting to be evacuated.
HAARP WEATHER MODIFICATION: SPAIN
— Lepa ⚜️ (@lepanigeria) October 30, 2024
A never seen before event has happened in Valencia, as part of the city lies in ruins thanks to an unprecedented tornado which destroyed buildings, houses and vehicles, causing panic and floodings in the region.???? pic.twitter.com/c0PHI9lVKi
On Wednesday morning, regional authorities confirmed that 73 people had died. By the afternoon, that number had risen to 95. It is Spain’s deadliest flood since a 1996 disaster in the Pyrenees when at least 80 people lost their lives after a campground was flooded.
The scale of the flooding currently unfolding in Valencia, Spain is unfathomable. This is footage from Chiva, where a jaw-dropping 343 mm of rain was recorded in just 4 hours earlier today, between 4:30 PM and 8:30 PM.
— Nahel Belgherze (@WxNB_) October 29, 2024
Video credit: Nalabcer pic.twitter.com/WdCgUifavQ
BREAKING: Horrific flooding disaster in Spain. At least 51 lives lost in the Valencia region, and the toll is expected to rise. ????????
— Shubham Singh (@Shubhamsingh038) October 30, 2024
Our hearts go out to the victims and their families during this tragic time.#SpainFlood pic.twitter.com/8Mf0qNFKNF