More Than 70 People Dead After Worst Flash Flooding in Spain in 3 Decades: ‘A Total Wreck'

Mar. 15, 2025

More than 70 people have died after severe flash flooding in Spain, officials said.

The floods walloped southeastern Spanish cities from Malaga to Valencia on Tuesday, Oct. 29, according to theAssociated Press.

Government officials told Spanish newspaperEl Paíson Wednesday, Oct. 30, that the death toll from the flooding has increased in Valencia to 72.

A year’s worth of rainfall fell in about eight hours in Valencia, according toReutersand theBBC. It’s the deadliest flood in Spain in three decades, and more than 140,000 people are without power in Valencia.

It is also unclear just how many people are missing. Ángel Víctor Torres, Spain’s minister of territory policies, said, “The fact that we can’t give a number of the missing persons indicates the magnitude of the tragedy,” theAPreported.

Women walk through mud-covered streets amid piled cars after flash-flooding hit the region on October 30, 2024 in Valencia, Spain.David Ramos/Getty

David Ramos/Getty

Images from the flood-affected areas show damaged cars, people walking through the floodwaters and mounds of soil deposits left behind once floodwaters receded in some areas.

Valencia authorities said more than 200 people were rescued from cars after they were caught in the floodwaters, according toABC News.

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A view of the flooded area after a deluge brought up to 200 liters of rain per square meter (50 gallons per square yard) in hours in La Torre neighborhood of Valencia, Spain on October 30, 2024.Alex Juarez/Anadolu via Getty

Alex Juarez/Anadolu via Getty

Christian Viena, a bar owner in the Valencian village of Barrio de la Torre, told the AP that the mud is 30 centimeters (nearly one foot) in some areas.

“Everything is a total wreck,” she added. “Everything is ready to be thrown away.”

A view of the damaged cars after a deluge brought up to 200 liters of rain per square meter (50 gallons per square yard) in hours in La Torre neighborhood of Valencia, Spain on October 30, 2024.Stringer/Anadolu via Getty

Stringer/Anadolu via Getty

The Spanish government has declared three days of mourning in the wake of the deadly floods, according toThe Guardian.

The European Union has offered its support to Spain.In a post on X, EU Commission presidentUrsula von der Leyensaid “Europe is ready to help” in Spanish.

“What we’re seeing in Spain is devastating,” von der Leyen wrote in English. “My thoughts are with the victims, their families and the rescue teams.”

“We will help you for as long as it takes,” Sánchez wrote. “We will not leave you alone. All of Spain is with you.”

Residents walk in a street covered in mud following floods in Valencia’s De La Torre neighbourhood, eastern Spain, on October 30, 2024.RUBEN FENOLLOSA/AFP via Getty

RUBEN FENOLLOSA/AFP via Getty

This is the deadliest flood since the 1996 flood in the Pyrenees mountains that killed 87 people, Reuters reported.

source: people.com