Spain downgrades storm warnings after evacuations

Spain's national weather service downgraded bad weather alerts after powerful storms hit southern Malaga province and eastern Valencia, already battered by deadly flash floods two weeks ago, causing damage but no casualties.

Local authorities maintained orange weather alerts, the second highest level, and continued caution in Andalusia and Valencia and referenced further storms in the provinces of Huelva, Cadiz, Seville, Alicante and Valencia.

Emergency services in Malaga kept almost 4,000 people who were evacuated because of a flood risk out of their homes, while schools stayed closed in the province and in different towns in Granada, Sevilla, Cadiz and Huelva. Half a million children in total stayed away from Andalusian schools yesterday.

"We continue to monitor (the storm's) progress in all provinces. Caution until the end," Andalusia regional head Juanma Moreno said on X.

He added that would the return journey for those who had evacuated would be "very difficult".

The swift evacuations in and around the southern city of Malaga yesterday "likely saved many lives", said Jess Neumann, a hydrology professor at Britain's University of Reading.

The emergency committee in Valencia, where there were concerns about the potential impact of more rainfall in areas with significant quantities of mud already and damaged sewage systems, said the areas affected by the deadly storms were not hit this time.

It lifted a ban on the use of private cars and allowed schools to reopen from midday after the worst of the storm passed, the spokesperson for the emergency committee, Rosa Touris, told reporters.

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High-speed trains between Madrid and Valencia, suspended since the 29 October storm, were expected to resume from midday, and the train connection between Valencia and Barcelona also started running again, the Transport Ministry said.

Flood victims still missing

Last month's storm marked the country's deadliest floods in decades, and regional legal authorities in Valencia said that of the 216 victims, there were 190 Spaniards, nine Romanians, four Moroccans, four Chinese and two Britons.

One citizen each from Ecuador, Venezuela, Ukraine, the Netherlands, Tunisia, Colombia and Paraguay were also among the fatalities, they added.

Almost half of the people killed in Spain's Valencia region during the recent floods were 70 years old or older, authorities said.

Spain's population is ageing and the surging waters caught care home residents off guard, including in the hard-hit town of Paiporta.

Male victims were more numerous, with 131 men dying compared with 85 women.

Recovering and identifying bodies has been an arduous task for rescuers and forensic experts, who are continuing their work in Valencia with more victims believed to be missing.

The latest storms, and robust preparations for their arrival, came after fierce criticism, primarily of local authorities but also national government, for their level of preparation for and warnings to citizens about last month's storm and resulting floods mainly in Valencia, which killed more than 220 people as well as destroying homes, businesses and infrastructure.