At least 63 people have died in devastating flash floods in eastern Spain

BARCELONA, Spain (AP) – At least 63 people have died in eastern Spain after flash floods swept away cars, turned rural streets into rivers and damaged railways and highways in the worst natural disaster to recently hit the European nation.

Emergency services in the eastern region of Valencia confirmed the death of 62 people on Wednesday. The central government office of the Castilla-La Mancha region added that the body of an 88-year-old woman was found in the city of Cuenca.

Tuesday’s storms caused flooding across a large area of ​​southern and eastern Spain, stretching from Malaga to Valencia. Floods of mud-colored water threw vehicles onto the streets at high speeds, and pieces of wood swirled in the water with household items. Police and emergency services used helicopters to pull people from their homes and rubber boats to reach drivers trapped on car roofs.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said dozens of cities had been flooded and warned the danger was not over yet.

“Those who are looking for their loved ones, all of Spain feels your pain,” Sánchez said in a televised speech. “Our priority is to help you. We are committing all necessary resources so that we can recover from this tragedy.”

Authorities reported several people missing late Tuesday evening, but the next morning came the shocking news that dozens of bodies had been found.

“Yesterday was the worst day of my life,” Ricardo Gabaldón, mayor of Utiel, a town in Valencia, told national broadcaster RTVE. He said there were still some people missing in his town.

“We were trapped like rats. There were cars and garbage containers on the streets. The water level rose to three meters,” he added.

More than 1,000 soldiers from Spanish crisis response units were sent to the devastated areas. Emergency services also rushed east from other parts of Spain. Spain’s central government has established a crisis committee to help coordinate rescue efforts.

One elderly couple was rescued from the upper floor of their house by a military unit using a bulldozer, accompanied by three soldiers on a huge shovel.

Television reports showed videos shot by panicked residents, documenting water flooding ground floors of apartments, streams overflowing their banks and bridges sagging.

Spain has experienced similar autumn storms in recent years. But nothing compared to the flood-like devastation that has occurred over the past two days in Germany and Belgium 230 people died in 2021.

The death toll is likely to rise as other regions have not yet reported casualties and searches continue in difficult-to-access areas.

Mayor Sergio Marín Sánchez said six people were missing in the village of Letur in the neighboring Castilla-La Mancha region.

Spain is still recovering from a severe drought and continues to record record results high temperatures in recent years. Scientists say extreme weather is becoming more common possibly linked to climate change.

The storms produced a freak hailstorm that blew holes in car windows and greenhouses, as well as a rarely seen tornado.

Transport also had an impact. A high-speed train with almost 300 people on board derailed near Malaga, although railway authorities say no one was injured. The high-speed rail link between Valencia and Madrid has been interrupted, as have suburban lines.

Valencia region president Carlos Mazón urged people to stay at home as road travel is already difficult due to fallen trees and wrecked vehicles.

When the water receded, thick layers of mud mixed with garbage made the streets unrecognizable.

“The area is destroyed, all the cars are lying on top of each other, it’s literally smashed,” Christian Viena, a bar owner in the Valencian village of Barrio de la Torre, said by phone. “Everything is a total wreck, everything needs to be thrown away. The mud is almost a foot deep.”

Outside Viena’s bar, people came out to see what could be saved. Cars were piled high and the streets were filled with clumps of wet branches.

Relatives of the missing people flood social media and local television and radio with appeals to find their loved ones.

Leonardo Enrique told RTVE that his family spent hours searching for his son, 40-year-old Leonardo Enrique Rivera, who was driving a delivery van when it started raining. His son sent a message that his van had been flooded and that he had been hit by another vehicle while he was near Ribarroja, an industrial town that is one of the hardest hit, Enrique said.

Valencia, located south of Barcelona on the Mediterranean coast, is a tourist destination known for its beaches, citrus orchards and the Spanish rice dish paella.

Like other areas of Spain, Valencia has gorges and small riverbeds that are completely dry most of the year, but when it rains they quickly fill with water. Many of them pass through populated areas.

The rain in Valencia stopped late Wednesday morning as the storm headed north, prompting Barcelona region authorities to issue weather alerts.

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Associated Press journalist Teresa Medrano in Madrid contributed to this report.

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