Spanish gov't announces €10.6b aid for flood-hit area

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced on Tuesday that the government would provide economic and fiscal aid of 10.6 billion euros for the areas affected by the devastating floods, reported Xinhua.

Speaking in a press conference at the Palacio de la Moncloa, Sanchez said the regions of Valencia, Castilla-La Mancha and Andalusia affected by last week's torrential floods had been designated as disaster zones, which means the government could apply an urgent law to pass the massive aid package.

According to the prime minister, the Plan for the Immediate Response, Reconstruction, and Relaunch of the Valencian Region would be applied to 78 municipalities -- 75 in Valencia, two in Castilla-La Mancha, and one in Andalusia -- to help them deal with the immediate emergency, recover and rebuild.

So far, over 210 people have been confirmed dead in the torrential flood while many remain missing as the recovery effort continues.

The Spanish Ministry of Defense reported that over 7,800 troops are now working in the affected areas along with 6,000 members of the Civil Guard and National Police force, as well as local police. Around 1,700 firemen from brigades all over Spain are also in the region, helping with the cleanup and recovery work.

Till Tuesday morning, the electricity supply has resumed to 98 percent of the population in the region, and 93 percent got water supply. However, residents there have been advised to continue using bottled water for drinking and the rest for cleaning.

In a positive turn of events, an underground car park in a shopping center at Bonaire has now been pumped clear and no victims discovered. It was feared that many bodies might be found in the car park, which has room for 5000 vehicles.