Survivor of Spain’s deadly floods: ‘I know at least 30 people who could have died’

Residents of Sedaví and Alfafar, two towns located just south of the Spanish city of Valencia, have been hit with some of the worst consequences of the flooding without experiencing a single drop of rain themselves. Alfafar — home to nearly 21,000 inhabitants — was the first municipality affected by the overflow of the Poyo ravine, which collapsed on Monday night due to the heavy rainfall. Then Sedaví — with a population of around 10,000 — was also impacted. The towns are separated by only a narrow street.

Until 7:00 p.m., a tense calm prevailed in both towns. “We felt at ease because it was just windy, with no signs of rain,” recalls 18-year-old Alfonso De Juan, who grew up in the area. However, an hour later, residents began receiving alert messages on their phones. “Some friends from Massanassa told me to go inside my house because the river was coming,” adds De Juan. In less than 30 minutes, the towns were inundated by an avalanche of muddy water from the ravine.

“I was coming home from work at 8:30 p.m. and barely had time to close the door,” says 45-year-old resident Jeovany Moreto. He witnessed the water flooding the street, carrying away parked cars and crashing them against garages and commercial properties.

Moreto locked himself and his son in the garage, but as the water quickly rose to waist height, they had to call for help from a neighbor on the second floor, who brought them to safety on the terrace. This harrowing experience was a common story for many locals, who shared that they had to spend the night in the homes of strangers because it was impossible to return to their own.

The flooding engulfed the streets of both towns until around 4:00 a.m. on Wednesday, simultaneously disrupting the supply of electricity and drinking water. It was seven hours of sheer chaos. Many residents found themselves trapped in their vehicles or in commercial establishments. De Juan watched as several residents threw ropes from their balconies to rescue those who had managed to climb into their cars or cling to lampposts to avoid being swept away by the current. “I know at least 30 people who were close to death last night,” he shares.

This was the case for Juan P., who prefers not to share his last name. He recounted how he went to rescue a relative armed only with a broomstick. “At one point, while I was walking, I fell into an uncovered sewer; if I hadn’t stretched out my arms to catch myself, I wouldn’t be here to tell this story,” he shares calmly.

Unfortunately, not everyone was as fortunate. An 18-year-old resident from Alfafar died after attempting to leave her beauty business. The force of the water prevented her from escaping to seek help. Locals found her in the premises once the water level receded. It is estimated that the flood has claimed at least three lives in Alfafar alone. Overall, the storm has resulted in at least 140 deaths across Spain, with hundreds still missing, including children and even a few-month-old baby.

By morning, the main avenues of both towns were littered with piles of cars, with up to three stacked one on top of the other. Meanwhile, hundreds of residents used brooms to clear muddy water from their landings. Others climbed atop heaps of scrap metal in a bid to reach their doorways or businesses. De Juan managed to sneak into the Alfafar school, where marks on the wall showed the height of the flood.

Virtually no ground-level establishment was spared from the deluge’s force. The Sedaví Town Hall lost its front walls, and the local library collapsed. Hundreds of books were scattered across the town’s central square, where a large puddle completely covered the entrance to an underground parking lot. Bank offices, housing developers, bars, and even the supermarket on Alfafar’s main street were rendered inoperative. Residents emerged from the latter with carts full of products. “It’s people saving what would otherwise be useless,” De Juan explains. Similar scenes were reported in Paiporta, La Torre, and Horno de Alcedo, which also border Valencia to the south.

The city’s Ikea, located at one end of Alfafar, has become a temporary shelter, accessible only to residents of the affected towns with authorization from Spain’s Civil Guard. Officials have transported displaced individuals from the area to this facility, which continues to have power thanks to its generator. Moreto traveled throughout the area to locate one of his work vehicles, a van he purchased six months ago. He found it several streets away from his home “with no apparent damage,” but he prefers not to start it “until the internal circuits dry out.”

This cautious approach is shared by many neighbors who haven’t slept a wink all night. “It will take us months to recover from this,” says Moreto, an Ecuadorian resident who has been told that nothing like this has happened since 1957, when Valencia experienced a historic flood.

“Some have lost everything, especially those who lived on the first floor or had businesses on the ground level,” adds De Juan, who stands with friends on the main street of Alfafar, in front of the supermarket, where residents continue to emerge carrying boxes of cereal or bags of coffee.

“Do you see that? That’s the barber shop where I used to get my hair cut,” he points out, indicating a nearby establishment. The shop’s front window is shattered, its counter destroyed by the water, and several chairs are overturned. Outside, a group of locals has paused to take a break. In the background, the supermarket siren blares. Most people seem to have grown accustomed to the noise by now.

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