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Floods in Spain: Gruesome details emerge about how Valencia victims died
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Floods in Spain: Gruesome details emerge about how Valencia victims died



CNN

The full horror of Spain’s flash floods began to emerge on Friday, as new rains hit southern parts of the country.

At least 205 people died, including 202 people who were most affected by the storm. Valenciaemergency services in the area said in a statement on Friday.

This is the deadliest natural disaster Spain has experienced in decades.

The death toll is expected to rise as emergency workers struggle to rescue trapped people and remove bodies. Authorities warned on Friday that roads had collapsed in some areas and emergency services were unable to access.

The country has experienced significant fall storms in recent years, but nothing comes close to the devastation experienced in the past few days.

More details emerge about the devastation in the Valencia region; Residents reported extensive damage and terrifying encounters with rapidly rising water. A courthouse in Valencia, the capital of the region, was turned into a temporary morgue.

Volunteers continue their search for missing people in the La Torre district of the city, where the water rises to chest level.

Rescue teams found the bodies of seven people in an underground car park here on Thursday, national broadcaster RTVE reported, citing police.

The father of one of those killed in the parking garage, a local police officer, told Spain: El Mundo Residents rushed to move their cars, but the water rose faster than people expected, trapping them, the newspaper reported. He said another woman was dragged into the parking lot by moving water and died.

The Valencian town of Paiporta, where at least 62 people died, was described by Spanish public broadcaster RTVE as “ground zero of the tragedy”.

An eyewitness caught in the flash flood here told RTVE that he saw many cars passing by with people begging for help. Many motorists found themselves on a highway and drifting with their cars as the road appeared to merge with a nearby river. A bridge in the area also collapsed.

At least six people died at a nursing home on the outskirts of the town, the mayor of Paiporta told the Spanish national broadcaster. Although staff managed to get most of the elderly to the first floor, they could not save everyone.

Streets are still full of mud in many areas, with the mayor of Valencia sharing footage of community cleansing efforts on Friday. “Vehicles are being removed, the square is being cleaned, food and water are being collected,” Mayor María José Catalá said of La Torre.

Parts of Spain continue to see heavy rainfall on Friday, and authorities issued an overnight red warning for the coast of Huelva in Andalusia, which received 140 mm (5.5 inches) of rainfall in just 12 hours. Orange and yellow alerts continue in isolated areas of Valencia.