Valencia floods one month on - Is Catalonia prepared for extreme weather?

Filling the Sink

On October 29, an isolated upper-level depression affected Spain, causing heavy rain and floods. One month on, we discuss the tragedy, explore whether Catalonia is prepared for this kind of meteorological phenomenon and question why these slow-moving storm systems are becoming increasingly frequent.

Catalan News journalist Oriol Escudé talks to scientists and climate change experts David Pino and Davide Faranda, who explain the climatological conditions of the Spanish Mediterranean basin. We learn how human activity is affecting the intensity of storms and find out why construction in flood prone areas is still permitted.

To learn more about how Catalonia handles extreme weather events, we visit the Protecció Civil control and crisis centers and meet the Deputy Director of Operations, Imma Solé. Host Beth Cohen unveils Catalonia’s long history of flood episodes and analyzes current drought statistics to discover that every cloud has a silver lining.

This week’s Catalan phrase is “Qui sembra vents, recull tempestats” - in English, “He who sows winds, reaps storms”. It can perhaps serve as a warning that, if we continue to mistreat the planet and climate change advances, we can expect more storms like this in future.