Emergency services in Spain were able to rescue a woman trapped in a car next to the dead body of her sister-in-law for three days after deadly flash floods in Spain, where the death toll has now risen slightly to 211.
Police in the municipality of Moncada shared a video on social media platform
The woman was allegedly trapped in the vehicle for three days in the municipality of Benetússer, south of the city of Valencia, next to the body of her sister-in-law, the Europapress news agency reported, citing local newspaper Las Provincias.
Rescuers heard her screams as they towed cars stuck in a tunnel. The woman was taken for a medical examination, but no further details about her condition were initially known.
At least 211 people died in the storms and floods in Spain’s southern and eastern regions on Tuesday, most of them in the Valencia region, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said on Saturday after a meeting on the response to the disaster.
Spanish Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska said earlier on Saturday that he expects the numbers to continue to rise as rescue teams continue to carry out searches in the worst-hit areas.
There are fears that many more people could be found dead in cars swept away by the torrential rains that flooded towns and caused rivers to burst their banks earlier this week.
Thousands of volunteers on their way to the worst affected villages
According to Europapress, around 15,000 volunteer cleaning workers are being brought from the city of Valencia to devastated villages nearby.
The first volunteers left Valencia on buses on Saturday morning and were expected to return in the afternoon, after which further groups will be taken to the flooded areas, Europapress said.
The Valencia regional government had set up a volunteer coordination center on Friday to oversee the efforts.
However, officials urged volunteers not to drive their own cars to the affected areas to avoid blocking roads for rescuers.
Strict restrictions on driving remain in place across the region until Sunday to keep roads clear for emergency services.
Meanwhile, another 5,000 soldiers will be sent to affected areas this weekend to reinforce the 2,000 troops already there, broadcaster RTVE said. Another 5,000 local police officers and members of the national gendarmerie of the Guardia Civil are also deployed.
Sánchez said the additional 10,000 police and soldiers would help speed up recovery and cleanup efforts in the disaster area.
Many villages are covered in mud and cars, furniture and other household items are still piled on top of each other in the streets.
According to authorities, most of the power supply has now been restored.
