Spain floods death toll rises to 158 as rescuers search for survivors

At slightest 155 deaths recorded successful the eastbound portion of Valencia, 2 successful Castilla-La Mancha and 1 successful Andalusia.

The decease toll from Spain’s worst floods successful decades has soared to 158, exigency services and officials say, arsenic rescue services enactment frantically to find survivors.

The assemblage coordinating rescue enactment successful the eastbound portion of Valencia announced connected Thursday that 155 bodies had been recovered there. Officials successful Castilla-La Mancha successful cardinal Spain reported 2 deaths, and Andalusia successful the southbound announced one.

The widespread damage resembled the aftermath of a hurricane oregon tsunami. Cars were piled connected apical of 1 different similar fallen dominoes. Uprooted trees, downed powerfulness lines and household items were each mired successful mud that covered streets successful dozens of communities successful Valencia. The floods demolished bridges and near roads unrecognisable.

Local authorities person not disclosed however galore radical are inactive unaccounted, and Defence Minister Margarita Robles said the last nationalist decease toll could beryllium overmuch greater.

Opposition politicians accused the cardinal authorities successful Madrid of acting excessively dilatory to pass residents and nonstop successful rescue teams, prompting the Ministry of Interior to accidental determination authorities were liable for civilian extortion measures.

Valencia Mayor Maria Jose Catala told reporters that a section policeman was among the 8 dormant recovered drowned successful a store successful the suburb of La Torre. In the aforesaid neighbourhood, she added, a 45-year-old pistillate was besides recovered dormant successful her home.

“Those radical wouldn’t person died if they had been warned successful time,” Laura Villaescusa, a neighbour and manager of a section supermarket, told the Reuters quality agency.

Residents stitchery successful the thoroughfare adjacent to a heap of cars aft flooding successful the municipality of Massanassa successful the portion of Valencia successful eastbound Spain [Jose Jordan/AFP]

Al Jazeera’s Sonia Gallego, reporting from Valencia, said galore residents told her they received upwind alerts lone aft the floods.

“[They said] that they received nary information, that they yet did get alerts but those alerts sounded connected their phones aft the flood occurred,” she said.

“There’s a consciousness of frustration, fearfulness arsenic well, and a consciousness that nary 1 was coming to assistance them. Entire neighbourhoods person been wholly chopped disconnected from the remainder of the city.”

Regional authorities said precocious connected Wednesday that it seemed nary 1 was near stranded connected rooftops oregon successful cars successful request of rescue aft helicopters had saved astir 70 people.

“Our precedence is to find the victims and the missing truthful we tin assistance extremity the suffering of their families,” Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said aft gathering with determination officials and exigency services successful Valencia connected Thursday, the archetypal of 3 authoritative days of mourning.

Heavy rains continued connected Thursday farther northbound arsenic the Spanish upwind bureau issued a reddish alert for respective counties successful Castellon successful the eastbound Valencia portion and for Tarragona successful Catalonia. An orangish alert was issued for Cadiz successful the southwest.

“This tempest beforehand is inactive with us,” the premier curate said. “Stay location and heed the authoritative proposal and you volition assistance prevention lives.”

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Al Jazeera and quality agencies