Bodies found after torrential floods hit southern and eastern Spain

CNN
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More bodies have been found after parts of southern and eastern Spain were hit by severe flooding on Tuesday, with some places receiving up to 12 inches of rain in a few hours.

Footage from the city of Valencia showed mud-colored water flowing through streets, tearing down walls and sweeping away parked cars.

Valencia regional head Carlos Mazon told reporters early Wednesday that some bodies had been recovered as rescue teams began reaching areas previously cut off by the floods.

“Unfortunately, we can confirm that some bodies have already been found, but out of respect for the families, we will not provide more details,” Mazon said.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said an unspecified number of people were missing due to the flooding and asked citizens to act with “great caution” and avoid moving around unless necessary.

The Spanish government set up a crisis committee on Tuesday, according to the Palace of La Moncloa. It will be led by Sánchez and, from Wednesday, will coordinate the work of the Civil Guard, the National Police, the General Directorate for Civil Protection and the Military Emergency Unit.

Warnings of extreme rain were in effect on Tuesday for some areas, including around Valencia, according to Spain’s meteorological agency, AEMET. These warnings called for the possibility of 200 mm (8 in) of rain in less than 12 hours.

In some places, rainfall estimates were exceeded for even shorter periods. Chiva, which is east of Valencia, received 320mm of rain in just over four hours, according to European Severe Weather Database. The Valencia area averaged 77 mm (3.03 in) for the entire month of October.

Flooding was also reported in and around the cities of Murcia and Malaga, with more than 100 mm (4 in) of rain falling in some areas.

A strong upper-level depression is moving north into the region from Africa. The strong system brings a significant amount of atmospheric instability to the region. Extreme amounts of precipitation are also enhanced with moisture from the Mediterranean and updrafts to higher ground, which act to push additional moisture out.

Rainfall warnings continue through Wednesday for parts of eastern and southern Spain, according to AEMET. The warnings north of Valencia are for rainfall amounts in excess of 100 mm (4 inches) and rainfall amounts of 30 mm per hour (1.18 inches per hour).

In areas of southwestern Spain, the threat of heavy rain will continue until the end of the week.