At least 95 people have died after flash floods hit southern and eastern Spain on Tuesday.
The rain hammered regions from Málaga to Valencia, heavily damaging houses, roads, and critical infrastructure.
“Dozens of municipalities have been flooded, roads and highways have been cut off, bridges have been destroyed by the violence of the waters,” said Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez.
“In an area between Utiel and Chiva, in the province of Valencia, rainfall exceeded 300 litres per square metre. In that area, storm systems formed and regenerated continuously,” said State Meteorological Agency spokesperson Ruben del Campo about the disaster.
While Valencia’s flood warnings have subsided, rain is expected to continue across Spain until at least Thursday. Warnings remain high in southern Spanish regions like Seville and Cádiz, according to Spain’s State Meteorological Agency.
Other regions, including northern areas like Barcelona, also have a low-level flood warning, which is likely to increase in the coming days.
Spain has declared three national days of mourning.
Rail services to Madrid and Barcelona have been cancelled, flights have been diverted, and schools have been suspended.
According to the Spanish power company i-DE, around 150,000 of its clients in Valencia have no electricity.
This is the highest death toll in Europe from flooding since July 2021. 243 people died across the continent in that event, mainly in Germany and Belgium.