At least 51 people die in flash floods in Spain

At least 51 people have been killed in Spain after flash floods hit parts of the country.

Heavy rain flooded roads and towns on Tuesday, sweeping cars through the streets, derailing a train and damaging homes and buildings.

Authorities in the worst-affected areas had advised people to stay at home and avoid all non-essential travel.

Emergency services said at least 51 people had died in the floods in the south-east Spain.

Children were among those killed in the Valencia region.

In Letur, near the Sierra de Segura, thirty people were trapped after the river flowing through the town burst its banks.

Dozens of videos shared on social media appeared to show people stuck in the water, with some holding on to trees to avoid being swept away.

Authorities deployed helicopters to rescue some residents from their homes.

Other videos shared by Spanish broadcasters showed water entering the lower floors of houses and even dragging cars down the street.

‘Caught like rats’

Radio and TV stations received hundreds of calls for help from people trapped in flooded areas or searching for loved ones, as emergency services were unable to reach all affected locations.

More than 1,000 soldiers from the Spanish emergency response units were deployed in the devastated areas.

“Yesterday was the worst day of my life,” Ricardo Gabaldón, the mayor of Utiel, a town in Valencia, told national broadcaster RTVE. He said several people are still missing in his city.

“We were trapped like rats. Cars and garbage containers flooded the streets. The water rose up to three meters,” he said.

While rain eased in Valencia late Wednesday morning, the storms were forecast to continue until Thursday, according to Spain’s national weather service.

‘It was chaos’

A British couple told Sky News they had been stuck in their car for almost ten hours.

Vitalij Farafonov and his wife were on a yoga retreat in Valencia last night around 8 p.m. when they were diverted from the highway by police.

He said: “It was chaos as we counted nine or 10 overturned trucks on a half-mile stretch of the highway.

“We’ve never seen anything like this.”

The couple, who are originally from the Midlands but now live in Luxembourg, have four children who are safe in Barcelona with family.

Mr Farafonov said he and his wife were stuck “on a random rural road among beautiful orange groves”.

“We can finally see blue lights so people know where we are,” he added. “Like I say, we’re the lucky ones.”

Transport was severely affected by the floods.

A high-speed train with nearly 300 people on board derailed near Malaga, but authorities said no one was injured.

The railway lines were also disrupted elsewhere.

The storms will continue through Thursday, according to the country’s weather service.

Spain has experienced similar autumn storms in recent years.

Scientists have warned that increased episodes of extreme weather, such as flash floods or the wildfires seen elsewhere in Europe in the summer, are likely linked to human-induced climate change.

Meteorologists believe warming of the Mediterranean Sea, which increases water evaporation, is playing a key role in making downpours more severe.