Spain on Wednesday marked the first anniversary of last year’s catastrophic floods, which claimed more than 230 lives, amid lingering anger over what many see as a mishandled government response.
King Felipe VI presided over a national memorial ceremony in Valencia, joined by relatives of the victims who died when torrential rain submerged large parts of eastern Spain on the night of 29 October 2024.
The floods, among Europe’s deadliest natural disasters in recent decades, killed 237 people — 229 of them in the Valencia region. Click here for all our reports related to the Valencia Floods.
Valencia’s regional president, Carlos Mazón, faced hostility from several bereaved family members on his arrival at the event, and before it had begun. Some shouted ‘murderer’, ‘son of a bitch’ and ‘you should be in prison’, accusing him of incompetence in managing the crisis. Others had tried to shout them down, asking for respect.
Outside the venue, protesters once again called for his resignation. ALSO READ: A year after Valencia floods that claimed 229 lives, regional president still rejects claims of negligence.
Mazón has been widely criticised for his government’s sluggish reaction to the unfolding emergency. Authorities sent out flood alerts to mobile phones only after rivers had already burst their banks, sweeping away vehicles and homes. Reports later revealed that Mazón had been attending a long lunch while emergency officials were holding a crisis meeting.
Over the past year, large demonstrations demanding Mazón’s resignation have repeatedly filled the streets of Valencia. The most recent, held days before the anniversary, attracted tens of thousands of protesters. Despite this, Mazón has refused to step down, though his handling of the disaster continues to damage his right-wing People’s Party (PP). ALSO READ: Tens of thousands protest in Valencia on anniversary of devastating DANA floods.
The ceremony took place at Valencia’s City of Arts and Sciences, a cultural and architectural complex. Valencia city was also one of the areas hardest hit by the floods. Clean-up efforts — led largely by thousands of volunteers and residents — took weeks to clear the thick mud and debris left behind.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez attended alongside King Felipe, Queen Letizia, regional representatives, and families of the victims.
When the king, Sánchez, and Mazón first toured the devastated area last year, angry locals pelted them with mud as rescue efforts were still underway and power remained cut in many neighborhoods. Felipe has since revisited the region several times and has been warmly received. ALSO READ: Felipe VI and Letizia return to flood zone for first time since being pelted by mud.
At Wednesday’s ceremony, Felipe reassured the bereaved families of continued royal and state support: ‘The queen and I want you to know that we are now and always with you all,’ he said.
The monarch, who rarely makes political interventions, also indirectly referred to the Mazón controversy in a speech that emphasised the need to ‘continue analysing the causes and circumstances of the tragedy’.
Such action aimed ‘to rigorously and calmly draw the necessary lessons to improve our ability to face other major catastrophes in the future, and avoid or minimise their worst consequences as much as possible’, he said.
Around 800 relatives of the victims were present, a handful of them wearing shirts showing photographs of their deceased loved ones. One bore the words ‘They were avoidable deaths’, and another ‘Justice’.
The proceedings included the reading out of each victim’s name, a dirge, speeches by relatives of the victims and a minute’s silence.
Andrea Ferrari was one of the 800 family members who spoke at the ceremony.
‘One year ago today our lives were changed forever, and we still feel the void inside us,’ Ferrari told the moved audience.
In last year’s disaster, torrential rain unleashed flooding that killed 229 people in towns near Valencia.
Seven more people died in the neighbouring Castilla-La Mancha region, and one person died in Andalusia in the south.
The deluge swept away 130,000 vehicles and damaged thousands of homes, generating 800,000 tonnes of debris.
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Gritos e insultos a Carlos Mazón antes del inicio del homenaje de Estado a las víctimas de la dana.
🗣️ “¡Con la periodista, sinvergüenza, cuando estaba la gente ahogándose!”#AniversarioDANArtve
▶️ https://t.co/CsnIfwik76 pic.twitter.com/GNJj41LWGL— RTVE Noticias (@rtvenoticias) October 29, 2025
Homenaje en memoria de las víctimas de la DANA presidido por los Reyes en la Ciudad de las Artes y las Ciencias (Valencia), coincidiendo con el primer aniversario de las devastadoras inundaciones en la Comunidad Valenciana, Castilla -La Mancha y Andalucía. pic.twitter.com/TaJsjyKLQA
— Casa de S.M. el Rey (@CasaReal) October 29, 2025
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