LAST UPDATE | 2 hrs ago
NEW WEATHER WARNINGS have been issued across Spain as further heavy rainfall is forecast following flooding which has killed over 200 people.
An exceptionally powerful Mediterranean storm from Tuesday unleashed heavy rains and torrents of mud-filled water that swept away people and wrecked homes, with the eastern Valencia region hit hardest.
The body coordinating rescue work in the Valencia region announced 203 bodies had been recovered there by Friday afternoon.
The government is deploying an extra 500 troops to the stricken areas to bolster the 1,200 already on site for search, rescue and logistics tasks.
The courthouse in Valencia city has been converted into a morgue, where health workers wearing smocks carried stretchers covered with white sheets.
Officials in Castilla-La Mancha and Andalusia had announced a combined three deaths in their regions on Wednesday.
But “dozens and dozens” of people remain missing, government minister Angel Victor Torres told reporters yesterday, raising fears the toll could rise further.
The minister also issued a warning that there would be an uncompromising response to looting, in a sign order was breaking down in some places.
Police on Friday said they had arrested 50 people for incidents including theft from cars and a jewellery store.
Some rural areas also remain inaccessible to rescuers.
“Please, stay at home… follow the calls of the emergency services,” pleaded Spain’s prime minister Pedro Sanchez.
“Right now, the most important thing is to save as many lives as possible,” Sanchez told residents of the eastern Valencia and Castellón provinces.
Parts of Valencia are under a Yellow alert for rainfall, while most of the Province of Castellón to the north of Valencia is under an Orange warning.
Barcelona is also under a Yellow warning.
Parts of southwestern Spain are also impacted by weather alerts, with a Red warning in place in Huelva, while the surrounding regions, including Seville, are under Yellow or Orange alerts.
Taoiseach Simon Harris has expressed his condolences following the flash flooding.
Harris was in contact with prime minister Pedro Sanchez yesterday evening to express Ireland’s “horror and sorrow” at the number of people who have lost their lives.
Harris said the emerging stories of loss and injury are heartbreaking and said Ireland would “help in every way we can”.
Sanchez thanked the people of Ireland for their solidarity and kindness.
Tánaiste Micheál Martin said this week that the floods were “illustrative of the worsening climate situation”.
He said: “I think it points to the need for stronger adaptation across Europe, within Ireland as well, given the impacts that climate change is now having.
“The indications are that climate change is here, it’s happening, so we’ve got to adapt.”
An analysis by World Weather Attribution has found that the rainfall was about 12% heavier and twice as likely compared with the 1.3-degree cooler pre-industrial climate.
The scientists said that while analysis is not a full and detailed attribution study, climate change is the most likely explanation.
-With additional reporting from © AFP 2024 and Press Association
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