Latest news Severe storms in Spain - at least 13 dead
Heavy rain has caused dangerous flooding in large parts of Spain and led to the deaths of several people. At least 13 people have died in the eastern autonomous community of Valencia, the Spanish state broadcaster RTVE reported, citing the Guardia Civil police unit. Others are still missing.
30.10.2024, 09:14
SDA
Rescue work continued in many places. The situation was particularly bad in the Mediterranean coastal regions of Andalusia, Murcia and Valencia, which are very popular with holidaymakers. In many places, roads, houses and fields were flooded and cars and trees were swept away by the masses of water.
The Prime Minister of Valencia, Carlos Mazón, called on residents to move to higher ground.
In some areas, residents were trapped in their homes and made emergency calls on social media, as reported by the newspaper "El País". The rain, which has been widely reported for days, is expected to move on to the north-east today.
However, a severe weather warning is still in place for large parts of the country. According to the weather service Aemet, the situation across Spain will not ease completely until Thursday.
Hail as big as golf balls
In addition to heavy rainfall, there was also hail and strong gusts of wind. In the Andalusian coastal town of El Ejido, not far from Almería, where the hail had already hit particularly hard on Tuesday night, fields and hundreds of vehicles were severely damaged. "The hailstones were the size of golf balls," farmer Mercedes González (46) told the newspaper "El País". "It seemed like the end of the world."
In many places in the south and east of Spain, highways and country roads had to be closed. Air and rail traffic was also affected. Classes were canceled at numerous schools and universities. Due to a rock slide, a high-speed AVE train on its way from Málaga to Madrid came off the tracks near the municipality of Álora shortly after the start of the journey with 291 passengers on board. However, there were no injuries, according to the Spanish rail company Renfe.
The storm with heavy rain had already hit Mallorca and the other Balearic Islands on Monday. The situation has since calmed down again, although some areas - including Mallorca - were still under a yellow weather warning.
