• Temporary: The Segura river overflows and floods the entire region of the Vega Baja of Alicante
  • Album: La Vega Baja, flooded. All images of the Segura flood

The cold drop that has traveled the southeast of Spain in recent days leaves behind a bleak scenario, with innumerable material damage, the evacuation of 3,500 people , more than 70 roads cut and the closure of Murcia airport, one of the most autonomous affected, together with the Valencian Community.

The torrential rains, which exceeded several historical precipitation records, also caused the death of four people , two in Albacete, one in Almería and another this Friday in Jámula (Granada), as confirmed by Interior Minister Fernando Grande-Marlaska.

Another consequence of the strong discharges was the overflow of the Segura river, mainly as it passes through the Alicante municipality of Orihuela but also throughout the Vega Baja region and in different parts of Murcia .

After the first thunderstorms of Thursday, the neighbors of Orihuela had barely been able to rest during the early hours of Friday, pending that the channel overflowed as it passed through the town. Finally, this Friday dawned with a new storm that contributed to the catastrophe and eventually flooded the entire region of the Vega Baja. From about half past five in the morning and in a very short time, the channel broke out at the height of the King's Bridge and flooded all the streets of the San Pedro neighborhood and the historic center.

The Emergency Military Unit ( EMU ), deployed since the previous day in the municipality, was struggling to build dikes with sand and gravel that were unloading heavy trucks, although little else could be done. One of the neighbors who lives in that area, José Cárceles, explained that the sewing workshop that his wife has on the street of La Corredera was completely flooded. «There is already at least one meter of water. Yesterday we put boards and sandbags to prevent water from entering but today they don't even see each other ». Nearby, some children played sailing in the middle of the street with a plastic inflatable near the Diocesan School of Santo Domingo - known as the Escorial de Levante - and Red Cross volunteers dragged a zodiac boat, trying to travel a street completely flooded with water at waist level.

It was the image of a city ​​besieged from the previous day , in which it was practically impossible to enter or leave during the whole day. As José Cárceles explained, the situation was not better for the inhabitants of the districts. «My girlfriend's son has been able to spend the night here but his parents have had to sleep inside the car, on a bridge over the AVE roads because his house, in the hamlet of La Aparecida, is inaccessible. They have lost everything there, ”he added.

And it is that in districts such as La Mata, Raiguero de Bonanza, Vereda Los Martínez or Hurchillo, among others, as well as in nearby municipalities , such as Benejúzar, Almoradí, Algorfa or Rafal the emergency was maximum throughout the morning to overflow there also the channel of the Segura.

BREAK IN MURCIA

With accumulations of rain that exceeded in some cases more than 500 liters of water per square meter , the weather has given the Vega Baja a break in the afternoon.

However, another threat was suddenly activated. The Segura Hydrographic Confederation proceeded about half past two on Friday afternoon to release 15 cubic meters per second from the Santomera reservoir in Murcia, where all limits had already been exceeded.

This caused the Emergency Coordination Center to decree the emergency situation 1 , notifying the municipalities to take appropriate measures to the possible avenues of water. In total, about 20 municipalities in the Segura basin, from Redován to Guardamar del Segura, were under the threat of a new flood of the river.

The measure also forced the evacuation of nearby Murcia districts, such as the neighborhood of La Mota, El Siscar and Orilla de la Azarbe.

In fact, Murcia was another of the territories punished by the Dana and the virulence with which the Segura grew, overflowing in rivers and canals near its valley in the entire Region.

The channel experienced its largest floods downstream from the Azud de Ojós and at the Contraparada station, where Thursday morning circulated 223.4 cubic meters per second, 88% of the capacity of the channel, which continued to grow as throughout the day due to the accumulation of runoff.

The risk of overflow was also maintained in the Rincon de Beniscornia and the situation was especially worrying downstream of the city of Murcia, where overflows in the districts of El Raal and Alquerías were kept in suspense, given the possibility of being accused by the Contributions of the Guadalentín River. In anticipation, since Thursday night the evacuation of the neighbors has begun to be carried out in the sports center of El Esparragal and the Cajigal Pavilion.

To this was added the extreme situation of El Reguerón, and the Puente de la Fica, as well as that of Beniel , where the overflow of the channels of El Indiano, El Reguerón, and El Orcajo could not be avoided. This caused the flooding of the urban center, as well as the garden of Tabala. UME troops, firefighters, and Civil Protection volunteers, have worked throughout the day in the evacuation work of the affected population to the device prepared in the Social Center of the municipality.

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  • Murcia
  • Fernando Grande-Marlaska
  • Valencian Community
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