The search continues for more victims of the floods in Valencia: there are already 217 dead

Rescuers continue this Monday searching for more victims in underground parking lots in Valencia, six days after floods that left at least 217 dead in Spain.

One day after a chaotic day in which the kings of Spain and the president of the government were received with insults and balls of mud by a desperate and angry population in one of the affected towns in the region of Valencia, The priority continues to be the location of the missing and the identification of the bodies.

The latest toll raised the number of people killed by the torrential rains that caused mudflows last Tuesday to 217, almost all of them (213) in Valencia, in the east, which are joined by three in neighboring Castilla-La Mancha and one in Andalusia.

>>> Also read: Angry population of Valencia throws mud at the kings of Spain and Pedro Sánchez

Authorities warn that the number of victims will continue to increase, since there are still many missing.

Almost 5,700 underground parking spaces are flooded

One of the biggest concerns is the underground parking at Bonaire, the commercial center of Aldaia, a town of 31,000 inhabitants on the outskirts of Valencia. In addition, almost half of the 5,700 positions are in the basement, which is completely flooded.

Images broadcast on television and on social networks show the access ramp to the underground garage full of water with mud, about which numerous debris floats. Escalators inside the shopping center They were also completely submerged.

“Right now the shopping center is devastated in the upper part. And the lower part is a terrible unknown. We are not sure what we are going to find,” the mayor of Aldaia, Guillermo Luján, told public television TVE.

“We want to be cautious, but (…) it can be devastating,” he said. In recent days, the military, participating in the rescue, has installed numerous pumps to reduce the water. Divers managed to enter the parking lot, but so far no bodies have been found.

In the towns most affected by the floods, the population shows anguish and irritation, with streets still blocked by piles of cars or furniture carried away by the current. and areas still without electricity or telephone signal.

“I was born here, and I have lost everything,” Teresa Gisbert, a 62-year-old woman in Sedaví, a town of 10,000 inhabitants south of the city of Valencia, told AFP with a broken voice. In his home, a dark line more than a meter high reminds us of how far the water rose on Tuesday.

AFP

“They said ‘alarm for water’, but they should have said it was a flood,” laments this woman, who like many other people complains about the delay in the alerts sent to the population on the day of the catastrophe.

Day of fury was presented on Sunday, November 3

The rage was fully visible on Sunday, when the kings of Spain, Felipe VI and Letizia, the president of the government, Pedro Sánchez and the head of the government of the Valencia region, Carlos Mazón, were greeted with cries of “murderers” and throwing mud balls, sticks and other objects in Paiporta, a hard-hit Valencian municipality.

In the midst of the tension, Sánchez was evacuated and Mazón retired shortly after, but the kings, with their clothes and faces stained with mud, stayed for a while trying to talk to the people, protected by their bodyguards who were constantly shaken. Finally, they left the site and canceled the visit to another damaged town.

The Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente acknowledged to the La Sexta channel that it was “a mistake” to have organized this visit without taking into account “the indignation that the delegation was going to encounter.” when Paiporta, where at least 70 people died, is still searching for missing people and is still committed to cleaning its streets.

Due to the bad condition of the roads and the rainy day, This Monday, the authorities maintained traffic restrictions on several roads in the Valencia regionwhere schools will remain closed.

In the metropolitan area of ​​Barcelona, ​​in Catalonia, commuter train traffic was suspended and A crisis committee was created at the Barcelona airport, where fifteen flights were diverted due to heavy rains, as reported by the authorities.

Valencia asks to postpone its Copa del Rey match due to floods

Valencia CF requested this Monday from the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) postpone the Copa del Rey first round match against Parla scheduled for Wednesday at the Estadio Las Américas.

“The Club understands that, in this time of great difficulty, all energy, attention and support must be focused on helping the people affected by the tragic Dana event. Football is in the background,” the team stated. che’ in a press release.

The Valencian entity took the opportunity to convey its deepest condolences and affection to family members.relatives of the deceased and victims of the catastrophe that has left the population devastated and shocked the entire country.

“Since Tuesday, Valencia CF is at the disposal of the authorities and affected municipalities to help in any way possible,” the note continued.

Several coaches and players of LaLiga teams suggested that all the weekend’s matches should have been postponed instead of just Valencia’s matches against Real Madrid and Villarreal’s match against Rayo Vallecano.

Atlético’s Argentine coach, Diego Simeone, declared for example that “it makes no sense” to play matches, while Barcelona’s German coach, Hansi Flick, said that if it had been up to him, he would have canceled the entire day.