What changed in Spain after the Valencia floods of 2024

Key rules

• Who sends ES-Alert: The regional emergency service usually decides on ES-Alert, unless the state has taken over the emergency.
• AEMET warnings: AEMET issues weather warnings but does not decide on ES-Alert, so act on a red warning without waiting for a phone message.
• Responsibility: Regions still lead emergency management; the state steps in only if it declares an emergency of national interest.

What happened

On 29 October 2024 a DANA (a pocket of cold air that causes extreme rain) set off catastrophic flash floods in Valencia province. About 230 people died, around 220 of them in Valencia province. The rest died in Castilla-La Mancha and Andalucía.

Near Chiva, about 490 mm of rain fell in roughly 8 hours. That is close to a year's rainfall for the area. The Poyo ravine overflowed and hit towns in Horta Sud, such as Paiporta, Catarroja, Sedaví, Alfafar, Massanassa, Picanya and Aldaia. Utiel was also hit. Thousands of homes and vehicles were damaged.

The weather agency AEMET issued a red warning in the morning. The ES-Alert message, the emergency alert sent to phones, only arrived after 20:00. By then the flooding was already underway.

What you can rely on now

Who sends the alert. The civil-protection authority responsible for the emergency decides on an ES-Alert. Usually that is the regional emergency service. In Valencia it is the regional emergency directorate with its coordination centre. If the state takes over an emergency, the national authority decides. The national civil-protection directorate runs the system and can send alerts too.

What the message does. The authority chooses the area and the wording. The message then goes through the phone operators to every phone in the affected area.

Weather warnings are separate. AEMET issues weather warnings, but it does not decide on ES-Alert. A red warning is a signal to act yourself. Do not wait for a phone alert. Stay away from ravines, riverbeds, underpasses and car parks, and do not drive through water.

What changed since

After the floods, the central government approved aid packages and reconstruction measures. The Valencian regional government changed its emergency leadership. Its president, Carlos Mazón, resigned in November 2025.

Debate and reforms have focused on four things:

• emergency protocols
• how ES-Alert is used
• coordination between AEMET, the river basin authority (Confederación Hidrográfica del Júcar) and regional authorities
• updating flood plans

A judicial investigation continues.

What has not changed

Regions still lead emergency management. The state steps in only if it declares an emergency of national interest. So for local flooding, expect the alert to come from your regional authorities. Check with your town hall what its flood plan says for your street.

The questions below the article cover who decides on alerts, why the 2024 message was late, and whether responsibility moved to the national government.

Frequently asked questions

Who decides when an ES-Alert flood message is sent?

The civil-protection authority responsible for the emergency decides when an ES-Alert message is sent. In practice that is usually the regional emergency service, or the national authority if the state has taken over.

Why did the ES-Alert message reach phones so late in October 2024?

The ES-Alert message reached phones after 20:00, when the flooding was already underway, even though AEMET had issued a red warning in the morning. The two are separate steps: a weather warning does not automatically trigger a phone alert. Do not wait for a phone alert to act on a red warning.

Did responsibility for emergencies move to the national government after the floods?

No, regions still lead emergency management, and the state steps in only if it declares an emergency of national interest. Reforms have focused on emergency protocols, ES-Alert use, coordination between AEMET, the river basin authority and regional authorities, and updating flood plans.