Lorca Flooding Aftermath

 

Residents of Lorca, Murcia awoke this morning and were immediately faced with the destruction and devastation left behind by unprecedented rainfall and floods.

Several areas of the city have been completely washed away and many properties remain inaccesible or completely submerged.

Torrents of water have abated leaving behind vast areas of standing water. In some cases, the standing water is over 5 metres deep.

Military support has been quickly deployed to the worst affected areas and firefighters have spent most of the day searching submerged vehicles for survivors, clearing roads and pumping out water logged properties.

President of the Region of Murcia, Ramón Luis Valcárcel, has spent the day surveying the destruction and hearing from emergency personnel involved. Three official days of mourning have been announced.

Spanish PM Mariano Rajoy has conveyed his deepest sympathies for those caught up in the disaster and vowed to do all that was possible to help.

For the families and friends of those who lost their lives he said "There are some things we cannot do" meaning lives could not be restored. The PM said he would ask EU partners to come to their aid.

Lorca's annual feria (fair in English), a major date on the fiestas calendar in the city, have been cancelled after only 6 days as a mark of respect. The feria was due to run for another 8 days.

Residents in nearby Puerto Lumbreras, which was also severely hit, have had to contend with broken infrastructure, missing vehicles and deep mud. Home owners were overwhelmed by yesterdays deluge and the cleanup today.

Several areas of Lorca are once again without electricity tonight with the added problem of fresh running water supplies cut off.