Storm Adam floods eastern Spain, four dead and thousands evacuated

Storm Adam brought torrential rains to eastern Spain, causing severe flooding in southern Valencia and northern Alicante. The rains began on Friday and affected Valencia and Catalonia most seriously.

Four people died in the floods. Three victims were recorded in Valencia and one in Catalonia. Residents climbed onto roofs to escape rising waters, and rivers overflowed.

“The situation is extremely difficult.”

In Oliva, emergency teams found a 79-year-old woman with mobility problems dead in her home, and a 64-year-old man staying at a campsite died of a heart attack. A woman who entered the sea in Sagunto on Saturday also died in Valencia.

In Catalonia, a 35-year-old woman was swept away by a torrent in Malgrat de Mar on Saturday. Her body was later found in Camprera de Mar.

Spain's Military Emergency Unit (UME) was mobilized on Monday morning from its Bétera base. About 2,000 people were urgently evacuated from seven apartment buildings in Oliva.

Authorities activated Level 2 emergency status. Temporary shelter was arranged in municipal buildings and sports facilities for affected residents. Meteorologists said the event could be the most serious since November 1987.