Spain flooding: largest peacetime troop deployment ordered

The new deployments will arrive over the weekend and are to include 5,000 soldiers and 5,000 members of the police and Civil Guards, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said in a speech on Saturday. That will take the total number of troops and police in the affected areas to about 17,000. 

Sanchez said the new deployments come at the request of Valencia’s regional president, Carlos Mazon, who under Spanish law has full control over the emergency relief.

If more support is needed, Valencia’s government need only ask, Sanchez said. “I know that the response hasn’t been enough” and the two administrations must work together, he added.

Mazon and Sanchez, who belong to rival parties, have come under growing criticism as thousands of self-directed volunteers take to the streets to help victims of the flash floods amid a growing feeling that governments aren’t doing enough.

The torrential rains of Oct. 29 destroyed houses, roads and bridges, killed more than 200 people and left hundreds more unaccounted for. Parts of Valencia received a year’s worth of water in a few hours.

Read more: Spain Searches Storm-Ravaged City as Death Toll Exceeds 200 

Some of the most affected areas, such as the town of Paiporta, received little or no rain but were severely impacted by mudslides and water rushing downstream from areas hit by storms. 

Under Spanish law, regional governments have full legal control of emergency relief management in natural disasters. It is up to them to request aid from the central government government or to cede control. Madrid can also unilaterally take over by intervening the regional government — a move that’s rarely happened in Spanish history.