The DANA in Numbers

Floods caused by the devastating DANA that hit mainly the province of Valencia on Tuesday, October 29, but also affected the rest of the community and areas of Castilla-La Mancha and Andalusia, have become one of the largest natural disasters so far. The number of fatalities increases daily, now standing at 224, and search efforts continue for people officially reported missing.

Due to the severe damage caused by the flood in 75 municipalities, according to government data, the number of Armed Forces, National Police, and Civil Guard personnel deployed to the area continues to grow to restore normalcy as soon as possible. The number of volunteers who have decided to set aside their daily tasks to help a population that lost everything in minutes has also increased.

According to data provided by the Minister of Transport, Óscar Puente, the confirmed death toll from the DANA stands at 224 as of early Friday afternoon, November 8, with 215 found in the Valencian Community, 7 in Castilla-La Mancha, and 1 in Andalusia. However, one of the bodies found by emergency personnel in Albufera is yet to be identified, as the decomposition level complicates efforts to determine whether it is a person or an animal.

The decomposition level of the bodies and the large amount of work complicate the task of identifying the DANA's victims. So far, the identities of 168 people have been confirmed.

Data provided this Thursday by the Superior Court of Justice of Valencia indicates that there are 78 official reports of disappearances, a number that has decreased by 5 compared to the previous day.

The flood that hit the Valencian Community swept away everything in its path, including cars. It is estimated that the vehicle fleet in the areas affected by the DANA has been reduced by over 100,000 cars.

Emergency personnel have had to rescue 36,657 people since the torrential rains began. Of these, according to data published by the central government at 12:00 on Friday, 52 occurred in the last 24 hours.

Most of the towns that have been paralyzed since October 29 are located in the province of Valencia. The total number of municipalities currently working to rebuild their daily lives is 75.

From Moncloa, a total of 18,228 personnel have been deployed to 72 of the 75 affected municipalities. The Armed Forces, with 8,500 professionals, and the National Police and Civil Guard, with 9,728 agents, are spread across the 4,608 square kilometers currently occupied by the operation.

One of the priorities for emergency personnel since the disaster began has been inspecting garages and basements due to concerns that many people might have been trapped there. There was urgency to reach these places to search for survivors or find the bodies of those who might have been trapped among the parked vehicles. So far, according to government data, they have accessed 353 garages and basements.

The first plan presented by the Prime Minister, Pedro Sánchez, includes aid for those affected by the DANA, both personally and for businesses that have seen their operations devastated by the rain. This is valued at 10.6 million euros, in addition to the budget set by the governments of the Valencian Community, Castilla-La Mancha, and Andalusia.