Sánchez welcomed the fact that the President of the Valencian Community, Carlos Mazón, has decided to increase his request from 500 to 5,000 soldiers and reiterated that the government will proceed “immediately” with this deployment, insisting that “if he needs more resources, he should ask for them”.
“There is no need to prioritise some municipalities over others or to prioritise tasks. Priority is given when resources are lacking and this is not the case. It doesn’t have to happen. Therefore, the Valencian Community requires more troops, machinery, funding or technical advice. What they have to do is ask for it and we will provide it, as we are doing immediately.”
Today, 4,000 additional troops will arrive in the region and, first thing tomorrow morning, the remaining 1,000 will arrive, a total of 5,000, in addition to the 2,500 already working on the ground.
In addition, the government will deploy 5,000 national police and civil guards, bringing the total number of both forces to 10,000, in order to guarantee security on the streets following the looting that has led to the arrest of 82 people.
At the same time, the president has ordered the deployment of an amphibious navy ship equipped with accommodation, operating theatres, helicopters and a fleet of support vehicles, which will arrive in the port of Valencia in the next few hours, he said.
King Charles has written a letter to King Felipe of Spain offering his condolences for the “tragic loss of so many lives”. “My wife and I were utterly heartbroken to learn of the destruction and devastation following the catastrophic flooding in southern and eastern Spain. So many in the United Kingdom have strong, personal ties to Spain, and our nations are bound by so much that we have in common.” He said the King and Queen’s “deepest possible sympathy are with all those who have lost loved ones and livelihoods this terrible week”.
