Spain’s Forgotten Flooding | Opinion

On Oct. 29, 2024, Valencia, Spain, including the towns of Picaña and Paiporta, was hit by catastrophic flooding caused by a weather event known as gota fría, or “cold drop.” The torrents have left streets, homes, and infrastructure ravaged, transforming entire neighborhoods into landscapes of thick mud and debris. Now, with resources stretched to the limit, residents face a stark reality. They are in urgent need of outside support to rebuild their lives—support that has not met the demand.
The aftermath has been brutal. Over 200 lives have been lost, and more than a hundred people remain unaccounted for as rescue operations continue, each effort weighed down by the destruction. Amid the devastation, young volunteers from across Spain have flooded into the area, armed with little more than brooms and unwavering resolve. Yet, despite their dedication, the lack of formal coordination and adequate resources has hampered their efforts, underscoring the urgent need for better-organized relief.
Johan Kulhan, who has been volunteering tirelessly with grassroots organizations like ADFA (A Demand For Action), expressed both pride and frustration.
“My friends and I have been coming here every day since the disaster started, but we are tired of the lack of more organized efforts,” he said. “It takes us two hours just to walk here, since it’s impossible to pass due to the mud and all the cars that are stacked on each other. I wish there was better coordination with the authorities so we could have more structure and help even more.”
Alongside ADFA, local businesses and residents have rallied in impressive displays of solidarity. Sanharib Talay, a Swedish-born resident managing the Pizza4U restaurant chain in Benidorm, has assisted ADFA in gathering, transporting, and delivering essentials to the affected areas—ensuring volunteers and survivors have the resources they need to help.
As municipal workers and exhausted volunteers slog through days of clearing debris, the response from larger entities has lagged. When Spain’s King Felipe VI and Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez visited Paiporta, they faced not only appreciation but also frustration. Residents, in an emotional display, threw mud and stones in protest—a visceral expression of their feeling of abandonment.
A municipality worker, who asked to remain anonymous, tasked with managing one of the newly established aid distribution centers, is stretched thin. Her phone keeps ringing, messages arriving constantly. She hasn’t slept for more than a few hours since the flooding began, caught between the growing demands of survivors and the limitations of resources. Observing her and countless others working to exhaustion, one has to wonder, where is the European Union’s support? Where are the international organizations with the means to provide structured, sustainable relief? It’s relieving to at least see that World Central Kitchen (WCK), which was founded by renowned Spanish chef José Andrés, is on the ground. WCK focuses on providing meals in the wake of disasters, helping to feed people affected by crises around the world.
While passing yet another destroyed house and trying not to get mud up to my knees, I asked three young people who were cleaning a house by moving out all the destroyed furniture and trying to empty it of water if they used to live there, as it seemed they knew the house well. They said it’s their uncle’s home, and they are trying to clean and restore it as much as possible, hoping their uncle, his son, and wife will return to it—hoping they are still alive.
The story of Picaña and Paiporta is a testament to both human resilience and the pressing need for action. Situated in the fertile agricultural belt near Valencia, these towns have long thrived on their groves of citrus, almonds, and olives. Their annual festivals, like Las Fallas, weave together deep-rooted cultural traditions, drawing both locals and visitors into celebrations of heritage and community. Yet today, these towns bear the scars of a catastrophe that will not heal without substantial aid.
Spain has seen deadly flash floods in recent years, a grim reality linked to climate change. The recent catastrophe in Valencia and surrounding regions underscores the urgency of both immediate support and long-term adaptation to prevent future tragedies. We at ADFA recognize that what we do is minimal, but every little bit counts, and yet, with so much at stake, the absence of international support remains disheartening. For now, each effort—no matter how small—remains a drop in the ocean, an essential but solitary wave in a sea of overwhelming need.
Nuri Kino is an independent investigative multi-award-winning reporter and minority rights expert.
The views expressed in this article are the writer’s own.