Nine communities in Spain, including Valencia, which was severely affected by flash floods two weeks ago, are now facing a new weather warning as a storm is on the way
New weather warnings have been issued in the areas of Spain which were devastated by severe flash floods two weeks ago.
Nine communities have been warned to brace for heavy rain and a municipality suspended school classes and sports activities because of the weather conditions. The communities affected include Aragón, Asturias, Cantabria, Castilla y León, Catalonia, Galicia, Murcia, the Balearic Islands and Valencia.
Reports in Spanish media say classes and sports activities were halted in Chiva, in the province of Valencia, with a military vehicle alerting the population with a megaphone. In the municipality of Paiporta, efforts are continuing to flatten the mud that accumulated during the floods and clean sewers so that water can flow.
Sandbags were placed in the municipality of Aldaia to protect the urban area, according to Spanish newspaper El País. It comes as the latest weather forecast from Aemet warned that the new storm seems to mainly threaten the Mediterranean coast and eastern Andalusia.
More than 200 people have been killed in the floods – and many of the victims were found dead in their cars. Meanwhile, clean-up efforts are continuing in the region, with volunteers coming together to remove mud from the affected areas. At the weekend, more than 100,000 people took to the streets in Valencia to protest against the way authorities handled the floods – and demanding the resignation of regional head Carlos Mazón.
Many marchers held up homemade signs or chanted “Mazón Resign!” Others carried signs with messages like “You Killed Us!” Protesters, who have accused local authorities of issuing flood warnings far too late, clashed with police towards the end of the demonstrations.
Valencia City Hall was smeared with mud, prompting the city’s mayor, María José Catalá, to post pictures of broken windows and a window appearing to show a fire being started on social media, with the caption: “Vandalism is not the solution.”
Earlier on Saturday, Mr Mazón told regional broadcaster À Punt that “there will be time to hold officials accountable,” but that now “is time to keep cleaning our streets, helping people and rebuilding.” He said that he “respected” the march.
Mr Mazón, of the conservative Popular Party, is also being criticised for what people perceive as the slow and chaotic response to the natural disaster. While thousands of volunteers began clean-up efforts in the worst-affected areas of Valencia’s southern outskirts, it took days for officials to mobilise the thousands of police reinforcements and soldiers that the regional government asked central authorities to send in.
