Flash floods in Spain claimed at least 158 lives, and 155 deaths were confirmed in one region alone, officials announced today.
An unknown number of people are still missing, and more victims could be found.
The torrent turned streets into death traps and spawned rivers that tore through buildings, sweeping away cars, people and everything else in its path.
"Unfortunately, there are dead people in some of the vehicles," said Spanish Transport Minister Oscar Puente.
Floods destroyed bridges and destroyed roads.
"I saw bodies floating by. The firemen took the elderly away first. I'm from the area so I tried to help and save people. People were crying everywhere, they were trapped," said Luis Sanchez, one of the eyewitnesses of the accident.
Regional authorities said no one appeared to be stranded on rooftops or in cars in need of rescue after helicopters rescued about 70 people.
"Our priority is to find the victims and the missing so we can help end the suffering of their families," Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said after a meeting with regional officials and emergency services in Valencia.
The Mediterranean coast of Spain is often exposed to storms and floods in autumn, but this was the most powerful flood in recent times.
Scientists link this to climate change, which is also responsible for increasing temperatures and droughts in Spain, as well as the warming of the Mediterranean Sea.
The highest number of victims was in the town of Paiporta near Valencia, home to about 25.000 people, where Mayor Maribel Albalat said 62 people had died.
"Paiporta never has floods, we never have this kind of problem. We found many elderly people in the city center. There were also many people who came to get their cars out of their garages, and that was a trap," said Albalat.
While the most damage was done to municipalities near the city of Valencia, the storms hit parts of the southern and eastern coast of the Iberian Peninsula.
Two deaths were reported in the neighboring region of Castilla La Mancha and one in Andalusia.
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