An aspiring business owner has transformed his property into a haven for families in need of a place to stay.

Marcus Makay was renovating his house near Valencia to turn it into tourist accommodation, but when floods hit he paused work to make his rooms available to families in need.

Living uphill in the mountains, he was largely unscathed by the flood and initially tried to help on land, but was unable to enter the affected towns.

To talk The World with Yalda HakimHe said that after seeing the devastation that he “could not even put into words”, he opened a place on Facebook and was very impressed by the reaction.

“I’ve had an incredible response from people who need help,” said Mr. Makay, who said he has 10 bedrooms and a separate flat.

A family of five, including three children, has already moved here and will be able to stay “as long as they have to.”

Animals are also accepted at the shelter, which has 30 dogs this weekend.

“I don’t sleep, I don’t eat, I just try to organize people and help them,” he added.

“And yeah, it was hard, to be honest. It was really hard.”