Destructive flooding in Spain: Numerous dead or missing following aid efforts

Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons

On Tuesday, October 29, a year’s worth of rain fell over one day, leading to widespread destruction for many of Spain’s citizens. Efforts are still underway to clear the damage from one of the worst natural disasters the country has faced in decades.

The hardest hit region was Valencia, where most deaths came from. Across all areas, 211 deaths have been reported, though it is expected to rise as many residents have not been found. Government aid has been issued in full force after Spain’s Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez ordered over 10,000 police officers, military troops, and civil guards to aid the local populace. Efforts are being made in search and rescue, pumping water out of stations such as tunnels, and distributing aid.

Citizens were caught off guard by the flooding, with many returning home from work when it began. Many feel betrayed by Spain’s local governments, as citizens did not receive the emergency response sent out by Spain’s Civil Protection Agency until hours later— when the flooding had already caused untold damage. 

Valencia’s regional leader, Carlos Mazón, is under scrutiny for removing the Valencia Emergency Unit (UVE) because it was inefficient. The UVE was implemented to respond to disasters like this historic flooding in the previous election but was not heavily utilized. As soon after Mazón was elected, the system was removed. 

While the damage was done hours after the flooding began, and the emergency response to citizens was sent out, reports suggest that an earlier set of evacuation guidelines and which areas would be most affected could have greatly lessened the damaging impact.

The damage, which has occurred mainly in the eastern and southern regions, has turned dirt roads into mud and cut off power to towns, and many citizens did not have reliable access to food or water. Aid has been effective; most homes have had their power restored, and telephone lines are said to be repaired over the Nov. 2 weekend.

This disaster was not unusual. Meteorologists explain that the severe rain was caused by a phenomenon known as a "gota fría," or cold drop. This occurs when a pocket of cool air in the atmosphere detaches from the jet stream, resulting in intense rainfall— such events typically happen during autumn.

The most likely explanation for why this rain was so heavy and dangerous is man-made climate change. Researchers at the World Weather Attribution Initiative found that rainfall was twice as likely to occur because of fossil fuel pollution than under normal circumstances.

A separate study by Climate Central found that the rain combined with a surplus of moisture from an atmospheric river in the Atlantic Ocean with abnormally warm temperatures. Data from their Climate Shift Index, specifically for oceans across the globe, found that these temperatures “...were made at least 50 to 300 times more likely by human-caused climate change.”

As work goes into helping those affected by the disaster, it seems there is still more to come. The meteorological service across Spain, Aemet, warns that rainfall and storms are expected to push in towards the southern and Mediterranean regions following Friday, Nov. 1, and into the weekend.