Shocking footage reveals first moments of Valencia flood catastrophe and the way residents had been caught off-guard: Videos present terrifying pace at which dry roads had been was death-trap rivers

Shocking new footage shows how quickly things escalated in Spain after a storm surge that led to heavy rainfall and flooding in the province of Valencia left over 150 people dead. 

A video shared on X shows the distressing moment the disaster unfolded, as Valencia’s inhabitants were caught off-guard. 

The harrowing clip shows how a forceful cascade of water unexpectedly pours into the street, forcing vehicles to come to a stop.

Within seconds, roads are inundated with brown waters and debris, as passersby who were caught off-guard begin to hurry away for cover.  

In a separate video shared on TikTok that was filmed from the balcony of an apartment building shows how in less than an hour streets were completely submerged and cars were washed away as people tried to flee. 

A video shared on X shows the distressing moment the disaster unfolded, as Valencia’s inhabitants were caught off-guard

The harrowing clip shows how a forceful cascade of water unexpectedly pours into the street, forcing vehicles to come to a stop

Marked with time stamps, the clip shows how at 19:17pm, strong winds hit the Valencian town of Benetusser.

Less than 20 minutes later at 19:33pm, footage shows how roads start getting jammed with vehicles as people attempt to flee to safety before the rain comes.

But by 19:40pm, only seven minutes after the second clip was filmed,  the video captures murky flood-water gushing in and inundating the streets, while people in cars continue trying to get away. 

At eight pm, the streets are completely submerged, while vehicles are seen being washed away and pile up against each other as ferocious floodwaters drag them down the road. 

By this point, a state of alert is declared in the town. 

The user who shared the clip, who goes by the handle @luuciaseguii on the social platform, wrote in the video: ‘The flooding couldn’t have been avoided, but if those in charge of notifying us had notified us sooner, there would have been fever deaths and fewer missing people’. 

The monstruos flash floods in Valencia have claimed at least 158 lives, as rescue crews have continued to search for bodies in stranded cars and sodden buildings. 

Within seconds, roads are inundated with brown waters and debris

In a separate video shared on TikTok that was filmed from the balcony of an apartment building shows how in less than an hour streets were completely submerged and cars were washed away as people tried to flee

At 19:33pm, footage shows how roads start getting jammed with vehicles as people attempt to flee to safety before the rain comes

But by 19:40pm, murky flood-water can be seen gushing in and inundating the streets, while people in cars continue trying to get away

More horrors emerged Thursday from the debris and ubiquitous layers of mud left by the walls of water that produced Spain’s deadliest natural disaster in living memory.

The damage from the storm late Tuesday and early Wednesday recalled the aftermath of a tsunami, with survivors left to pick up the pieces as they mourn their loved ones.

Cars were piled on one another like fallen dominoes, uprooted trees, downed power lines and household items all mired in mud that covered streets in dozens of communities in Valencia, a region south of Barcelona on the Mediterranean coast.

An unknown number of people are still missing and more victims could be found. 

‘Unfortunately, there are dead people inside some vehicles,’ Spain’s Transport Minister Óscar Puente said early Thursday before the death toll spiked from 95 on Wednesday night. 

Rushing water turned narrow streets into death traps and spawned rivers that tore through homes and businesses, sweeping away cars, people and everything else in its path. The floods demolished bridges and left roads unrecognizable.

Regional authorities said late Wednesday that rescuers in helicopters saved some 70 people stranded on rooftops and in cars, but ground crews were far from done. 

Spain’s Mediterranean coast is used to autumn storms that can cause flooding, but this was the most powerful flash flood in recent memory.

At eight pm, the streets are completely submerged, while vehicles are seen being washed away and pile up against each other as ferocious floodwaters drag them down the road

Firefighters pump out the floodwater out of a tunnel where vehicles are piled up, after heavy rains in Alfafar, in Valencia, Spain, November 1, 2024

A man walks in an area affected by heavy rains that caused floods, in Paiporta, near Valencia, Spain

A view of the disaster zone as search and rescue efforts and aid delivery process continue in Paiporta zero area of flood after catastrophic flash floods due to heavy rain in Valencia

Scientists link it to climate change, which is also behind increasingly high temperatures and droughts in Spain and the heating up of the Mediterranean Sea.

The tragedy is the worst natural disaster in the country for decades, with the Civil Guar forced to prevent looting while also carrying out vital rescue operations.

Some 39 people have already been arrested, according to data released by Spain’s Interior Ministry, as opportunistic criminals attempt to make off with high-value items from shopping centres and other people’s properties.