The worst floods to hit Spain in decades on October 29 killed at least 230 people, covered towns in mud and debris, destroyed bridges, roads and rail lines and submerged cars, mainly in the eastern region of Valencia.
"The degree of destruction and ruin was historic" in the Valencia region, where some 80 towns were hit by torrential rains, according to a report from Spain's Higher Council of Colleges of Architects.
Reconstruction must "be carried out with empathy, technical rigour and a great deal of responsibility," said its president Marta Vall-Llossera.
"With global warming making meteorological phenomena more intense and more frequent, architecture will have an important role to play," she told AFP.
"We're going to have to build differently," she added, recommending a return to "the traditional, compact Mediterranean city".
In Spain's third-largest city Valencia, the regional capital, land has become increasingly built up, making it more vulnerable to flooding since concrete prevents the ground from absorbing water.
In the Valencia suburb of Paiporta, epicentre of the disaster, roads were quickly transformed into torrents of mud that swept away everything in their path.
"We must try to re-naturalise cities, reduce the use of cars, make the cobblestones less hard, more permeable, and better able to withstand the intense heat and torrential rain," said Vall-Llossera.
- 'Forced expropriation' -
A flood risk prevention plan was approved in the Valencia region in 2003 but it is not binding and has no "retroactive effects", said Maria Jesus Romero Aloy, an expert in urban planning law at Valencia's Polytechnic University.
Valencia accounts for just five percent of Spain's territory which is at risk of flooding but has seen 20 percent of the heavy rainfall events recorded over the past decade in the country, according to the plan.
The highest risk of flooding is concentrated in 12 percent of the region -- home to the popular beach resort of Benidorm -- and affects 600,000 people.
In this area, the authorities recommend homes have watertight windows and an internal staircase with roof access to allow for an escape from flash flooding.
But Romero Aloy said there has to be a "rethinking the territorial model and considering removing buildings or installations that face a high risk" of flooding.
Property owners are currently allowed to rebuild on flooded land even in a high-risk zone.
The only way to prevent this is through a "forced expropriation" as happened in 2019 in Onteniente, a municipality some 85 kilometres (50 miles) south of Valencia.
There "a neighbourhood was eliminated" and turned into a floodway, a channel reserved for floodwaters to pass through, said Romero Aloy.
- 'Natural barriers' -
Mayors, however, are "reluctant to expropriate" because it is a "complicated political decision", especially when the country faces a housing shortage, she added.
But a month after the floods "there is a growing awareness among decision-makers," said Federico Jesus Bonet Zapater, an expert in civil engineering, canals and ports who advises the regional government of Valencia.
"Projects to build dams or divert canals, which have been on the table for some time, are finally going to be studied," he added.
Rafael Delgado Artes, an expert in regional planning and risk prevention, recommends creating "natural barriers" such as forests to minimise the damage from floods and "artificial riverbeds to divert rivers away from city centres".
In the centre of Valencia, which was spared the October disaster, the river that runs through the city was diverted after devastating floods in 1957 and in its place stands a popular urban park.
Rallies mark one month since Spain's catastrophic floods
Paiporta, Spain (AFP) Nov 29, 2024 -
Angry residents protested and lit candles in memory of victims on Friday as Spain marked one month since its worst floods in a generation killed 230 people.
Outrage swept the country after the October 29 catastrophe wrecked homes and businesses leaving thousands of cars piled up in muddy streets in the eastern Valencia region.
Telephone alerts reached some residents when water was already raging through towns, while several municipalities went for days without state help and relied on volunteers for food, water and cleaning equipment.
Church bells rang out at dusk in Paiporta, the epicentre of the disaster, at around the time the floods began. Several hundred locals, some wearing face masks, gathered near a ravine which was ravaged by the torrential rain.
They left a line of candles on both sides of the ravine in memory of 45 people who died in Paiporta in the floods.
"This tribute is for them, we put a candle for them so they are not forgotten," said Bea Garcia, a 43-year-old teacher.
"The people continue to feel alone, the anger remains and there is also fatigue and frustration. We are all exhausted." she told AFP.
At 8:11 pm (1911 GMT), the time when Valencia regional authorities issued an alert more than 12 hours after a warning by the national weather service several people played alarms on their mobile phones and chanted slogans calling for regional leader Carlos Mazon to resign or be jailed.
Similar rallies were held in towns and cities across Valencia, organised by trade unions, associations and local organisations.
Another protest is expected in Spain's third city Valencia on Saturday. A first demonstration on November 9 drew 130,000 furious citizens demanding Mazon step down.
"We have to be extraordinarily understanding with the protests... there are still lots of people who have received nothing, so we cannot rest," Mazon told reporters on Friday, announcing the reopening of Valencia's metro on December 3.
Popular outrage boiled over in Paiporta on November 3 when residents hurled mud at King Felipe VI, Queen Letizia, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez and Mazon.
Sanchez and Mazon were escorted away and their fleeting unity has since collapsed, with the left-wing central government and the conservative regional administration trading blame for the handling of the floods.
- 'Swimming in mud' -
Thousands of troops, police, firefighters and volunteers continue to clear debris, repair damage and extract mud from garages, basements and car parks in the traumatised Valencia region.
"We are literally swimming in mud. The children are still out of school, things are going very slowly in the village, and we can't find solutions," Sabrina Bermejo, a 41-year-old laboratory analyst, told AFP at the rally in Paiporta as she held a candle.
Spain's Economy Minister Carlos Cuerpo on Thursday reeled off a dizzying list of damaged property according to insurance data, including 69,000 homes, 125,000 vehicles and 12,500 businesses.
The government has scrambled to put together aid packages collectively worth 16.6 billion euros ($17.5 billion) in grants and loans to help stricken citizens.
But Amparo Peris expressed the despair of many in the flood epicentre who feel "abandoned" by politicians.
"We thank the volunteers, but we are very tired because this is not moving forward," the 35-year-old domestic assistant told AFP in Catarroja, where garages are still caked with mud and two piles of rusting cars greet visitors to the hard-hit town.
"This is horrific... I feel powerless because they (the authorities) do nothing," added Fina Solaz, 69, as she queued to collect essential goods.
Related Links
Bringing Order To A World Of Disasters
A world of storm and tempest
When the Earth Quakes
| Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters |
| Subscribe Free To Our Daily Newsletters |
