Eastern Spain faces dual crisis as Valencia fire and Costa Dorada floods strain emergency services
A lightning-ignited blaze near Valencia and severe flash flooding in Catalonia have forced hundreds of evacuations and dozens of rescue operations, testing Spain’s disaster response capabilities.
A forest fire near the inland village of Gatova, northwest of Valencia, has forced the evacuation of approximately 1,000 people after burning over 400 hectares of land. The blaze, which local media attribute to a lightning strike late Thursday, remained active in the darkness on Saturday. Spain’s Military Emergency Unit (UME) deployed firefighters and several helicopters to combat the flames, which were observed moving close to built-up areas.
Juan Carlos Valderrama, the civil protection minister for the Valencia autonomous community, stated that buses were on standby to assist residents without private transport. This response is part of a broader pattern of wildfires across Europe this summer, driven by record high temperatures along the Mediterranean. Spain recently declared a national wildfire emergency following blazes in the Madrid region and the province of Ávila, which forced approximately 10,000 evacuations.
Simultaneously, flash floods on the Costa Dorada in Catalonia trapped residents in vehicles and homes. Heavy rain recorded nearly 200 litres per square metre in a few hours, submerging roads in the coastal towns of El Vendrell, Coma-ruga, and Torredembarra. The Meteorological Service of Catalonia issued warnings for further heavy rainfall in the coastal region on Saturday morning.
Civil defence teams conducted more than 200 rescue operations to free people from vehicles and flooded buildings. At least seven people were injured in two separate wall collapses. Three people were injured when a wall collapsed at the port of Roda de Bera, located about 75 kilometres southwest of Barcelona, while another collapse at a nearby campsite injured two others.
Around 300 people staying at the affected campsite were evacuated, with many sheltering at a nearby sports centre. The dual incidents highlight the strain on emergency services as they manage simultaneous fire and flood risks in different parts of eastern Spain.
The deployment of the UME in Valencia mirrors its role in previous Spanish wildfire responses, underscoring the institutional reliance on military resources for large-scale disaster management. As the fire remains active and rain warnings persist, authorities continue to monitor the situation closely.
