Shovels and buckets to remove the mud, carts full of empty bottles and what remains of unlooted shops, children in pushchairs and elderly people in wheelchairs: a large number of people are fleeing among destroyed cars and felled trees, in search of drinking water and food. The municipalities south of Valencia, such as Paiporta, La Torre, Picana, Chive, Cheste and Torrente, are only twenty kilometres from the capital of the Turia, but the scene resembles a war scene. In the opposite direction, teams of young volunteers are advancing, bringing aid to the affected communities. Only forty-eight hours after the violent rains that hit south-east Spain, the extent of the tragedy is revealed: the death toll has exceeded 158, with many missing, while the first Civil Protection teams are starting to arrive.

Cristina Lopez, 53, tells ANSA about the devastation she experienced: “They are recovering the bodies from cars and houses. Nearby they found four neighbors swept away in their basement.” She and her family managed to save themselves in Paiporta, the epicenter of the disaster. “The rescue teams arrived only this morning; for 48 hours we were alone in the mud. On Tuesday evening everything happened in a few minutes. If there had been a timely alert, many lives would have been saved,” she laments. Complaints about delays in official communications and the lack of drinking water and electricity are being heard throughout the area.

Gaetano Marletta, owner of a car repair shop, recalls the dramatic moment: “The water in the stream rose rapidly. I only had time to grab the keys and run away.” Shops were also severely damaged by the flood wave that hit several municipalities such as Chiva and Catarroja. Tragedy also struck Maria Gracia Lourdes, a young mother found dead in her car while seeking shelter from the stream.

Maribel Gomez expresses the community’s grief: “We hoped until the very end for a miracle.” Mayor Maria Isabel Albalat reports at least 45 victims recovered in the municipality. Residents await vital aid such as water and food as they try to cope with the emergency. In La Torre, eight residents were found dead in the garage of a building swept away by the Poyo flood. The Magro torrent has also caused devastation with impressive scale. At least fifty bodies have been transferred to a central morgue in Valencia for identification through DNA tests and autopsies conducted by forensic doctors. The city is facing an immense tragedy that will deeply affect the local community.