Dylan Wagemans
NEARLY 70% of all victims who lost their lives because of flooding in EU countries in 2024 died during the catastrophic floods in Valencia, according to a report by Copernicus, the European Climate Agency.
Of the 335 people that died in floods last year, 232 of those perished in the Valencia disaster caused by the DANA last October.
Fatalities also occurred in the provinces of Albacete, Cuenca and Malaga, while infrastructure damage and economic losses were severe, totalling around €16.5 billion.
The storms persisted for several hours, breaking national records for total rainfall in 1 (184.6 mm), 6 (620.6 mm) and 12 hours (720.4 mm).
The one-hour rainfall total of 184.6 mm more than triples AEMET’s threshold defining ‘torrential rain’, of 60 mm.
On October 29, 771.8 mm of rain in 24 hours was seen at Turis Mas de Calabarra.
This is the second highest 24-hour rainfall total on record for Spain, after 817.0 mm observed in Oliva, Valencia during a similar event in 1987.
2024 saw the most widespread flooding since 2013, with river flows in 30% of the European river network exceeding the ‘high’ flood threshold and 12% exceeding the ‘severe’ flood threshold.
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The total damage caused by flooding in Europe is estimated to have cost at least €18 billion.
Much of Western Europe experienced wetter-than-average conditions, with some areas experiencing their wettest year on record.
River flows for the year as a whole were higher than average across much of central and northwestern Europe.
Extreme precipitation and surface-level flooding are expected to be more common in the future, according to several reports.
In recent decades, there has been an increase in average precipitation over northern, western, central and eastern Europe.
