Valencia floods: 130,000 protest over government's 'shameful' response

Crowd demands resignation of regional leader Carlos Mazon and accuse administration of failing to send warnings to mobile phones

About 130,000 people march to the centre of Valencia, protesting over the official handling of the flooding disaster on October 29. EPA

An estimated 130,000 people protested in the eastern Spanish city of Valencia, calling for the resignation of the regional president for what has been described as the chaotic response to the recent floods that devastated the area, leaving more than 200 dead.

A group of protesters clashed with riot police outside Valencia's city hall as the crowd called for the resignation of Carlos Mazon, after his administration was accused of failing to send warning texts to mobile phones ahead of the flooding.

Marchers chanted “Mazon resign” and carried placards with messages such as “You Killed Us!”, while groups of demonstrators threw mud at the walls of the city hall. Mr Mazon said that while he respected the marchers, “there will be time to hold officials accountable” but now “is time to keep cleaning our streets, helping people and rebuilding".

The death toll from the floods stood at 220 on Saturday, 212 of whom were recorded in the Valencia region, as the search for more bodies goes on. Thousands lost their homes in the deluge and streets are still covered in mud and debris more than 11 days after the floodwater hit.

Mr Mazon said the magnitude of the disaster was unforeseeable and his officials had not received sufficient warnings from central authorities. However, Spain’s weather agency issued a red alert, the highest level of warning, for bad weather as early as 7.30am on Tuesday, October 29. Some communities were severely flooded by 6pm later that day but it took until after 8pm for the Mazon administration to send alerts to people’s phones.

In addition, Mr Mazon, who represents the conservative Popular Party, is accused of being too slow to respond effectively once the floodwater started to swamp towns in the region. It took days for officials to organise the thousands of police reinforcements and soldiers that were needed. In Spain, civil protection comes under the auspices of local authorities, who can ask the national government in the capital Madrid for extra resources and assistance.

'Shameful'

Sara Sanchez Gurillo marched on Saturday in protest over losing her 62-year-old brother-in-law, Candido Molina Pulgarin. She told the Associated Press his body was found in a field of orange trees after he was trapped by the water in his home in the town of Cheste, west of Valencia.

“It’s shameful what has happened,” she said. “They knew that the sky was going to fall and yet they didn’t warn anyone. They didn’t evacuate the people. We want them to resign!

“The central government should have taken charge. They should have sent in the army earlier. The king should have made them send it in. Why do we want him as a symbolic figure? He is worthless. The people are alone. They have abandoned us.”