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Anger boiled over on Sunday in the flood-stricken Valencia region as locals attacked Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez’s motorcade and threw mud at King Felipe VI.
A royal entourage which also included Queen Letizia came under considerable pressure from angry crowds in the town of Paiporta, which is among the hardest hit by the devastating floods that have claimed the lives of at least 211 people, with 1,900 other still missing.
Residents accuse authorities of failing to warn them about rising floodwaters and complain that recovery teams have been largely absent in the aftermath of the disaster.
“I want to convey all our solidarity and our recognition of the anguish and suffering of the people of Paiporta,” Sánchez told the media. But he added that he “rejected the kind of violence like that which we’ve seen today.”
While tens of thousands of civilian volunteers have travelled to Valencia to assist in the clean-up, recovery professionals have yet to arrive in some of the affected villages, where locals continue to live among ruined buildings, mountains of mud and dead bodies.
Paiporta’s residents reacted with fury when the king and a police escort composed of dozens of officers appeared in the town on Sunday, throwing mud, bottles and other objects at the retinue.
“It’s been four days, where have you been?” indignant locals asked at a lightly mud-splattered Felipe VI. “You’ve just come here to pose for pictures. You have no shame!”
“You lack for nothing while we here don’t even have water to drink,” angry residents shouted at a visibly distressed Queen Letizia, who had mud flung in her face. “People are dying here!”
The Spanish monarchs attempted to remain in the area and reason with locals, but they were eventually obliged to leave. As they got back into their vehicles, a police officer’s shout of “long live the king” was countered by a resident’s cry of “guillotine!”
Although the royal household initially said that the monarchs’ visit to the devastated area would continue, it later announced that a scheduled visit to the town of Chiva was cancelled “by joint agreement of the state, regional and royal household authorities.”
The local attack on Spain’s monarchs reflects growing discontent with how Spanish authorities are handling the disaster and its aftermath. National government officials complain that regional authorities, who have jurisdiction over emergency management, have been slow to accept Madrid’s offer to send in more recovery forces. On Saturday, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez announced 5,000 soldiers and 5,000 police officers would be sent to the area as part of Spain’s largest-ever deployment of troops in peacetime.
Sánchez himself was also targeted by furious locals on Sunday. The prime minister was due to accompany the king during his visit to Paiporta, but was forced to turn back after his entourage was attacked; one of the vehicles in his motorcade had its windows bashed by a crowd carrying shovels.
Protestors threw sticks at Sánchez, but he was not hit and left the scene unharmed.
Regional President Carlos Mazón, who also accompanied the monarchs, faced angry crowds that accused him of inaction in the lead-up to the floods and referred to him as a “murderer.”
In a message on X, Mazón said he understood the “social indignation” and said that it was his “political and moral obligation” to receive it.
Spain’s national weather service issued new red alert for the Valencia region on Sunday, with torrential rains expected to fall in many of the same areas that suffered deadly flooding earlier this week. Residents are being advised to leave low-lying areas and seek refuge in multistory buildings.
This story has been updated.
