Spain counts cost of devastating storms

Storms and torrential rains that struck eastern and southern Spain on Tuesday have left more than 50 people dead and parts of the region underwater.

Flash flooding in parts of the interior are expected to have caused multimillion-euro losses to crops, with thousands of hectares of production believed to be affected. Farms have been left submerged, while roads, warehouses and agricultural infrastructure including ditches and drip irrigation have suffered extensive damage from the rain and hurricane-force winds, according to local reports.

In Valencia, agricultural union Ava-Asaja warned that some farmers will have sustained damage to 100 per cent of their harvest. Citrus, persimmon and vegetables are among the most affected crops. The union said it is still too early to quantify the losses suffered since it is not yet possible to access many of the affected farms as roads are impassable.

Ava-Asaja’s head of communications, Héctor Alepuz, told EFE  that the impact would not only be felt with this year’s harvest. He warned that many trees will probably drown and die, affecting future production seasons.

Parts of La Ribera Alta, Hoya de Buñol and Utiel-Requena were particularly badly affected by the foods, while areas such as Alfarp, Catadau and Llombai, as well as Carlet, Tous or La Pobla Llarga, among others, also suffered hail damage.

Another agricultural union, La Unió, noted that the rains would help replenish depleted aquifers after the prolonged drought, as well as helping to clean trees of possible pests and diseases. However, it remains to be seen if the wet conditions will also cause excessive problems with fungi in the coming weeks.

In Andalusia, Malaga and Almería were the worst affected areas. According to initial estimates, hail impacted some 4,200ha of crops in western Almería. The regional government of Andalusia said it would provide “much help to farms as is necessary” once the storm damage has been assessed.