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Agence France-Presse

Furious locals hurled mud and insults at Spain’s king, queen and prime minister on Sunday in a startling show of anger in the worst hit town in the flood disaster that has killed more than 210 people.
More heavy rain fell on the Valencia region after King Felipe VI, Queen Letizia and Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez were forced to leave Paiporta where more than 70 people died in floods last Tuesday.
Mud hit the monarchs in the face and clothes as they tried to calm the angry crowd in scenes that underscored the fury over the response to the disaster that has now killed at least 217 people with many more still missing.
The king and queen went to a crisis centre in Paiporta. But extra security guards soon had to keep the angry crowd, shouting “murders”, away from the royals and prime minister. They put up umbrellas to stop mud hitting the royal couple.

The king said later that Spain had to “understand the anger and frustration” of people affected by the devastation to towns where cars have been left in muddy heaps in streets.
In a social media video, the king called on the public to give the victims “hope and their guarantee that the state in its entirety is present”.
Most of the fury seemed directed at Prime Minister Sanchez and Valencia regional government head Carlos Mazon.
“I understand the social anger and of course, I’m here to receive it. This is my political and moral obligation,” Mazon said in a post on X.
The rear window of Sanchez’s car was broken before he and the local politicians quickly left. The socialist leader said that while he empathised with the “anguish and suffering” of the victims, he condemned “all forms of violence”.
Spanish media later reported of the possible involvement of far-right groups during the incident. Sanchez’s deputy Maria Jesus Montero reacted to the allegations on X, saying “We will not allow radical groups to profit from people’s pain”.

Spain’s meteorological agency issued a “red alert” for new storms in the Valencia region on Sunday and heavy rain started falling in the night.
Police using megaphones urged Valencia residents to stay in their homes. While the alert was later downgraded, schools in Valencia were to remain closed Monday.
Authorities have come under fire over the lack of warnings before the floods and the slow reaction after.
“I am aware the response is not enough, there are problems and severe shortages ... towns buried by mud, desperate people searching for their relatives ... we have to improve,” Sanchez said.
With an extra 10,000 troops, police and civil guards sent to the Valencia region, Spain has now ordered its largest peacetime military and security force deployment, Sanchez said.
“Thank you to the people who have come to help us, to all of them, because from the authorities: nothing,” a furious Estrella Caceres, 66, said in the town of Sedavi.

In Chiva, restaurant owner Danna Daniella said she was still in shock, haunted by memories of people trapped by the raging floods “asking for help and there was nothing we could do”.
“It drives you crazy. You look for answers and you don’t find them.”
Transport Minister Oscar Puente told El Pais daily that certain places would probably remain inaccessible by land for weeks.
An army of volunteers with food, water and cleaning equipment have played a key role in the recovery, though authorities have urged people to stay home to avoid congestion.
On Sunday, the Valencia government limited the number of volunteers authorised to travel to the city’s southern suburbs to 2,000 and restricted access to 12 localities.
Despite this thousands made their way to stricken communes on foot, carrying brooms and shovels.
Storms coming off the Mediterranean are common this time of year. But scientists have warned that climate change is increasing the ferocity, length and frequency of extreme weather events.
Emergency services on Sunday listed 213 dead in the Valencia region, one in Andalusia in the south and three in Castilla-La Mancha neighbouring Valencia.
Authorities have warned the toll could rise as vehicles trapped in tunnels and underground car parks are cleared.


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Spain

Angry crowds hurl mud at Spanish royals and prime minister on visit to flood disaster town

People throw mud at Spain’s King Felipe as he visits Paiporta, near Valencia, Spain. Photo: Reuters

Angry residents during the king’s visit. Photo: AFP

Spain’s King Felipe VI in flood-hit Paiporta on Sunday. Photo: AP

Scenes in Paiporta, near Valencia, Spain. Photo: Reuters

Spain flood victims feel abandoned as frustration mounts over state response

Several cars are piled up on the train tracks after heavy floods in in Alfafar in eastern Spain. At least 211 people were killed in Tuesday’s storms and floods in Spain’s southern and eastern regions, most of them in the Valencia region. Photo: dpa

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez (centre), accompanied by Spanish Defence Minister Margarita Robles (right), meeting officials while visiting the headquarters of the Spanish Military Emergency Unit (UME) in Torrejon Ardoz, Madrid, Spain, on Saturday, to thank UME members for their efforts in areas affected by flash floods. Photo: EPA-EFE

A man in a wheelchair gives out food and other supplies in Benetusser, in the region of Valencia, eastern Spain, on Saturday. Photo: AFP

Spain’s warning system under scrutiny as flood death toll nears 100

Vehicles piled up in a street from flooding in Valencia, Spain. Photo: AP

People walk through flooded streets. Photo: AP

A flooded slum area in Picuana, near Valencia, eastern Spain. Photo: AFP

A woman walks over debris. Photo: EPA-EFE

Deadly Spain floods show difficulty of adapting to intense rains

Cars are seen half submerged after floods in Valencia, Spain on November 1. Photo: AP

A view shows a cemetery after heavy rains that caused floods, in Paiporta, near Valencia, Spain on November 1. Photo: Reuters

Workers of a logistics company clean an industrial unit in the province of Valencia on November 1. Photo: EPA-EFE

Cars are strewn on the side of a main road after floods in Valencia, Spain on Friday. Photo: AP

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Incident in flood-hit Paiporta underscored growing fury over the management of Spain’s biggest natural disaster in decades


Incident in flood-hit Paiporta underscored growing fury over the management of Spain’s biggest natural disaster in decades.
