An angry Spain, still reeling from floods, faces more rain
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People help to clean, following heavy rains that caused floods, in Paiporta, near Valencia, Spain, on Nov 4.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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MADRID – As families along Spain’s Mediterranean coast took to the country’s airwaves to plead for help finding lost loved ones in the aftermath of last week’s devastating floods
Thousands of soldiers and police officers deployed to the region to help with rescue and recovery efforts were stymied by up to a foot more of rain in some places on Nov 4. Spain’s meteorological agency had recorded about 152.4mm of rain by 11am in Barcelona (6pm Singapore time) and warned that the city could get another 127mm later in the day.
The agency also predicted heavy rains in the coastal provinces of Castellon, Tarragona and Barcelona.
Spain’s Interior Ministry said on Nov 4 that the death toll had risen to 215 people from the floods spurred by downpours that began last week. The disaster has sparked an angry debate in Spain over accountability, with some people accusing government officials of waiting too long to send warnings.
Dozens of flights were cancelled and 18 were diverted from the international airport in Barcelona, according to the airport operator. News agencies shared videos of flooding in the terminals.
Rain was also falling in Valencia, the region hit hardest by last week’s flash floods. That could complicate search-and-rescue efforts still under way there.
Several main roads in the region remained cut off, and some people were without power or drinkable water.
As a clearer picture of the scale of the catastrophe has emerged, Spaniards have questioned why so many people were seemingly unprepared for the destruction or the violence of the storms.
Spain’s meteorological agency started issuing weather warnings days before the storm intensified and issued a flurry of them on the morning of Oct 29, when rains were heaviest.
But the regional government in Valencia, which controls the formal alert system, did not send out a text message with an alert until after 8pm that day, when the floodwaters were already rising.
That has led to anger and frustration with the authorities – sentiments that spilled over on Nov 3 in Valencia, when a delegation of leaders came to visit the town of Paiporta, where at least 60 people died.
Protesters screamed insults and flung mud at King Felipe VI
