VALENCIA VALENCIAN COMMUNITY, SPAIN - OCTOBER 30: Wrecked vehicles after the passage of the DANA through the neighborhood of La Torre de Valencia, on 30 October, 2024 in Valencia, Valencian Community, Spain. The Comu...VALENCIA VALENCIAN COMMUNITY, SPAIN - OCTOBER 30: Wrecked vehicles after the passage of the DANA through the neighborhood of La Torre de Valencia, on 30 October, 2024 in Valencia, Valencian Community, Spain. The Comunitat Valenciana has registered the "most adverse" cold drop of the century in the region. The Generalitat has activated the procedure of multiple victims for "prevention of what may come", after the first balance points to 51 fatalities as a result of the storm. At this moment, there are still people waiting to be rescued and points without telephone coverage and without electricity. (Photo By Rober Solsona/Europa Press via Getty Images)MORE LESS
Earlier this week Spain’s Valencia region was hit hard by heavy rains and subsequent flooding, the latest manifestation of climate change as the atmosphere and oceans warm. Some areas in the region received a year’s worth of rain in hours.
The deluge caused flash-flooding that took residents by surprise. With no warning about the severity of the storm, locals had little time to seek safety, leading to a mounting death toll that is already near 100. Electricity and transportation remain affected, and search efforts have been slow. The extent of the damage is still being assessed.
Residents try to clean up after the flood
Several people carry out clean-up work in the La Torre neighborhood of Valencia on October 30, 2024. (Photo By Rober Solsona/Europa Press via Getty Images)
Cars and debris are piled in the streets
Cars are piled in the street with other debris after flash floods on October 30, 2024 in the Sedaví area of Valencia. Spain’s meteorological agency had issued its highest alert for the region due to extreme rainfall. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)
A man walks through the debris
A man walks through a debris-covered street after flash floods on October 30, 2024 in the Sedaví area of Valencia. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)
A man makes a phone call next to a flooded street
A man speaks on the phone beside a flooded street after flash floods on October 30, 2024 in the Sedaví area of Valencia. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)
Vehicles carried by flood waters are stacked on top of each other
Wrecked vehicles in the neighborhood of La Torre de Valencia, on October 30, 2024. (Photo By Rober Solsona/Europa Press via Getty Images)
Mud-covered streets after the flash-flood
A man walks through mud-covered streets amid piled cars after flash-flooding hit the region on October 30, 2024 in Valencia. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)
Train tacks covered with debris
A woman walks along train tracks covered with debris after flash-flooding hit the region on October 30, 2024 in Valencia. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)
Cars suspended on guardrails after the flooding
Vehicles in the vicinity of the V-30 on October 30, 2024 in Valencia. (Photo By Rober Solsona/Europa Press via Getty Images)
Emergency workers clear debris
Emergency workers clear debris after heavy rains hit the region on October 30, 2024 in Letur. (Photo by Mateo Villalba Sanchez/Getty Images)
Residents walk devastated streets
Residents walk in a devastated street following floods in Letur, southwest of Valencia, on October 30, 2024. (Photo by OSCAR DEL POZO/AFP via Getty Images)
A man and his dog are rescured after flash floods hit the region
A man carries a dog after flash floods hit the region on October 30, 2024 in Letur. (Photo by Mateo Villalba Sanchez/Getty Images)
Flood waters receeded leaving piles of cars and debris
Cars and other debris are piled near a highway after flash floods and heavy rain hit the area on October 30, 2024 in Valencia. (Photo by Gonzalo Arroyo Moreno/Getty Images)
Streets covered in mud and debris, and a displaced boat
Residents walk next to a boat and debris in a street covered in mud following deadly floods in Sedavi, south of Valencia, on October 30, 2024. (Photo by JOSE JORDAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Street piled with wrecked cars
Pedestrians stand next to piled up cars following deadly floods in Sedavi, south of Valencia, on October 30, 2024. (Photo by JOSE JORDAN/AFP via Getty Images)
But climate change is a hoax don’t you know.