Devastating flash floods in Spain have killed at least 95 people, with dozens of others still missing. Ninety-two of those victims were in Valencia, a city on the eastern coast of Spain, on the Mediterranean Sea, according to government minister Ángel Víctor Torres.
Up to 12 inches of rain hit within the span of just a few hours on Tuesday.
“It’s not a rain pour, it was like a dam burst,” said Emiliano García-Page, regional government president of nearby Castile-La-Mancha. “People were calling [emergency numbers] crying, asking for help and it was almost impossible to reach them.”
The scene was like something out of a dystopian horror film, with inaccessible highways, suspended trains, and courthouses used as temporary morgues. Tons of vehicles piled on one another from the raging stormwater rushing them down roads.
“Unfortunately, there are dead people inside some vehicles,” said Spain’s transport minister Óscar Puente.
The terrifying conditions have left thousands trapped or blocked on the highway, according to Spanish state news agency EFE. Many residents sought shelter on the roofs of their homes as water flooded their first floors, while others were forced to evacuate to emergency shelters.
“It was agonizing,” one resident told TVE. “We stayed on the roof until 4 a.m. We didn’t have water, we were cold. Finally, the helicopter arrived … Everything is destroyed, but at least we are here to tell [the story].”
Others were separated from family members, still waiting to hear whether they were alive and safe. According to NBC News, the Spanish government deployed over 1,000 soldiers to help with rescues. The death toll will likely continue to rise as authorities make more discoveries.
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