“We were lucky not to sustain any material damage because we live in Valencia Capital, but the residents of the areas hit by the torrential rains lost everything, all they had.” Ana Victoria Gómez Dìaz, a member of the Focolare community in Valencia, describes by telephone, her voice cracking with emotion and tears, the plight of the city in these very difficult hours. An unspecified number of bodies are yet to be recovered from the muddy waters and the scale of the damage is yet to be fully assessed. “Parts of the Valencia are still unreachable. Volunteers can only get there on foot or by bike. The supermarkets are empty. We are relying on what we bought before the floods, but we don’t know for how much longer the water and the frozen food supplies will last. At least we have a house. Many others have lost everything.” At this point Ana’s voice breaks. She finds it hard to speak. She then tell us about of a family she knows living in one of the flooded neighbourhoods of the city. “We try to help in different ways. For example, we offered to wash the muddy, water-soaked clothes in our washing machine.”
The city of Valencia is in a state of shock, inundated with floodwaters and mourning hundreds of dead. The parish priest of the San Jorge church in Paiporta, Gustavo Riveiro, holds up an image of Christ recovered from the floodwaters: “His mud-caked face is a reminder of the more than one hundred dead in Paiporta, of the unspecified number of missing and of their loved ones.
That’s the real tragedy,” he said, “those who died. Everything else will be recovered one day, if at all possible…”.
Ana’s thoughts take her back to the day of the floods. “I remember it was very windy. Then the sky suddenly turned black. It only took ten minutes for all hell to break loose. Many people probably saw the dark clouds and rushed to their garages to get their cars out, only to be trapped and killed by the devastating floods.
Sunday was a day of anger and tears in Valencia. Tears for the dead. The Archbishop of Valencia, Monsignor Enrique Benavent, visited the districts of Paiporta, Picanya and Aldaia, while in the cathedral prayers were said for the victims and donations collected. The archbishop had visited the districts of La Torre and Castellar the day before, on Saturday. There has been some progress in clearing the roads to the affected neighborhoods. But Sunday was also a day of anger. Angry residents booed and shouted insults at King Felipe and Queen Letizia, Prime Minister Sanchez and Carlos Mazón, president of the Valencian government, during a visit to the flooded areas in Paiporta. The crowd shouted: “Murderers!” and “Get out, get out!”. Some of the protesters threw mud at the king. The “anger and frustration” of flood-affected residents must be “understood”, King Felipe said after the protests forced him to cut short his visit. “The people are angry,” Ana said. “There are clear responsibilities that must be answered by the political administration,” she pointed out. “There is also a lack of organisation in terms of rescue and aid. But this is not the time for controversy.”
As for looters ransacking shops, Ana remarked: “It’s true. It is a fact. Unfortunately, these moments bring out the best and the worst in society. But it should also be noted that goodness always wins.” Ana points to the young people who rushed to help the most affected residents from the very first hours. “It was 8 o’clock in the morning and I had just come out of the house,” says Ana. “I saw these young people in the street. Many young people trudging through the mud with boots on their feet and shovels in their hands. They mobilised on their own initiative. They were the first to help flood-affected residents, door to door, bucket by bucket… These young people, caked in mud up to their arms, are the most authentic “face” of this tragedy. They gave us all a lesson in love, solidarity and empathy. A message of hope”.
There have also been expressions of solidarity from the Church across Spain and internationally. The Cathedral of Valencia will make a donation of €150,000. The Spanish dioceses have also offered their support through Caritas Valencia. Aid is also pouring in from neighbouring Portugal via Cardinal Américo Aguiar.
