Floods in Spain: BWI stands in solidarity with its Spanish affiliates
More than a thousand people have been displaced between Valladolid and Valencia, devastated by the Dana phenomenon. Hundreds are dead, with an unknown number still missing since Tuesday, 20 October 2024. The situation is apocalyptic.
Numerous areas have received new alerts from the Spanish meteorological agency, covering several departments in Castellón (in the northern province of the Valencia region), southern Tarragona (in north-eastern Catalonia), and the west coast of Cádiz (in the south-west of the country). The Spanish working people have also received a message from King Felipe VI, urging unity and mutual support to overcome this trauma.
The country awoke to scenes of devastation, with entire villages swept away by the floods. The search for the missing continues relentlessly. Rivers of water have flooded the lower floors of buildings, destroying everything in their path. Many bridges and roads have been destroyed, and railway lines interrupted. Numerous families remain without electricity, while an unknown number are without running water. The priority remains finding the missing to bring relief to their families.
BWI stands in solidarity with its members suffering from the impacts of climate change and wishes to express its deepest sympathies to its Spanish affiliates following these devastating floods. This natural disaster, which scientists partially attribute to climate change, has caused more rainfall in a few hours than in the last 20 months.
In response to this extraordinary tragedy, BWI emphasises the urgent need for climate justice and a just transition to a more sustainable future. This initiative is now more critical than ever, not only for workers but for all communities affected by the escalating impacts of climate change.