Bodies found after torrential rain causes flash floods in Spain | Spain

Several bodies have been recovered by rescue workers after torrential rains in southern and eastern Spain caused flash floods that paralyzed roads and high-speed train services.

On Tuesday, raging, mud-colored floods swept through the town of Letur in the eastern province of Albacete, pushing cars through the streets, images broadcast on Spanish television showed.

The leader of the eastern Valencia region told reporters early Wednesday that several bodies had been found in flood-affected areas, without specifying the number.

“Bodies have been found, but out of respect for the families we will not provide any further data,” said Carlos Mazon.

Drone-assisted emergency services were searching for six people missing after flash floods in the city, the central government representative in Castile-La Mancha told Spanish public television TVE.

“The priority is to find these people,” she added.

Police in the Valencia town of L'Alcúdia said they were searching for a truck driver who had been missing since early afternoon.

“I am following with concern the reports of missing people and the damage caused by the storm in the last few hours,” Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez wrote on X, urging people to follow the authorities’ advice.

“Be very careful and avoid unnecessary journeys,” he added.

Twelve flights scheduled to land at Valencia airport were diverted to other cities in Spain due to heavy rain and strong winds, Spanish airport operator Aena said.

Another ten flights that were scheduled to take off or land at the airport were canceled.

National rail infrastructure manager ADIF said it had suspended high-speed services between Madrid and the eastern port of Valencia due to the storm's impact on key points of the rail network in the Valencia region.

A high-speed train carrying 276 passengers derailed in the southern region of Andalusia, although no one was injured, the regional government said in a statement.

Rescue workers rescued numerous people in Álora, Andalusia, some of them by helicopter, after a river burst its banks.

The state weather agency AEMET declared a red alert in the Valencia region and the second highest alert level in parts of Andalusia. Several roads were closed in both regions due to flooding.

The heavy rain was attributed to a phenomenon known as Gotta friaor “cold drop,” which occurs when cold air flows over the warm waters of the Mediterranean. This causes atmospheric instability, causing warm, saturated air to rise rapidly, leading to the formation of towering cumulonimbus clouds within a few hours and dumping heavy rains across eastern parts of Spain.

Scientists warn that extreme weather such as heat waves and storms will become more severe due to the climate crisis.