2026 is already the year with the most deaths from floods of the century in Catalonia

BarcelonaThe situation was extreme. On Tuesday afternoon, in Xerta (Baix Ebre), the clouds dumped with force more than 100 liters in a short time, and the emergency phone started ringing. Several calls came from the same place: at the entrance to the municipality, there were up to eighteen people affected by the water current, which had eaten away the road, right next to a gas station. Most of them were inside their cars.

The Generalitat Firefighters approached as much as they could, but not enough: there was visual contact with the people who had to be rescued, but a virulent water current prevented them from getting closer. They were less than 200 meters away. They told them to climb onto the gas station pumps, to get as high as possible. With their eyes on the weather radar, the Firefighters waited until the water calmed down and, finally, they were able to pull the victims out of that trap.

Oriol Pellisa, sub-inspector of the Firefighters, describes this scene with precision to exemplify how complicated this last week of downpours has been for the population, but also for the corps, with situations that, he admits, have pushed them to the "limit". This is demonstrated by several data points: during the flooding episode of the last few days, the corps dealt with more than 6,000 alerts. Of these, up to 334 were rescued as an emergency with life risk, and high peaks of simultaneity were recorded in areas such as the Terres de l'Ebre and the metropolitan area of Barcelona, both in the north and south areas.

At some points, every two minutes an urgent rescue request came in. In the Ebro region, they managed to carry out six services in half an hour. In the metropolitan area, there were 12. And the figure for Granollers on Monday morning is frightening: once again, in just half an hour, 16 rescue requests. "They were life-or-death situations. People trapped inside a vehicle, others with water up to their chests, people dragged along by the water," recounts Pellisa. This adds up to one rescue every minute and 53 seconds. In Granollers, it was especially complicated because at that time of the morning, many people were commuting.

The risk of moving around

"People must understand that when it is said that mobility must be reduced, it is because of the fatalities," explains Pellisa. The Fire Department has data demonstrating that 2026 has been particularly fatal in terms of deaths during flood episodes and that mobility has played a very important role. Between the years 2000 and 2026, Catalonia has recorded a total of 43 fatalities due to floods and river or stream overflows, and 2026 has been the second year with the most deaths in this period with eight victims, only behind the year 2000, which totaled ten. In other words, 2026 is already the year with the most fatalities from floods in the 21st century, which begins counting from 2001.

Of this global count, 64% (28 people) died while traveling in a vehicle, while 24% lost their lives inside buildings (mainly ground floors and parking garages). The rest corresponded to pedestrians or people trapped by the collapse of structures such as walls, as is the case of three victims of the recent storms in Catalonia (two in Roda de Berà and one in Tordera).

Furthermore, within fatal automobile accidents, 78% took place on local roads and habitual, known routes due to the false confidence of believing that one could cross the water passage. 52% were traveling in 4x4 vehicles or SUV off-roaders, with which the feeling of robustness and height generates an erroneous idea of safety.

The car as a shield

In fact, the general instruction from the Firefighters in these situations is to try not to touch the water and turn the car into your ally, even though for some the first reaction might be to try to get out at any cost. If a flash flood catches a driver mid-journey, the recommendation is to maneuver gently to move away from the main current without sudden steering movements.

The vehicle, however, should not be abandoned if there is no dry and elevated area a few meters away, as the bodywork acts as a protective shield against the impact of other cars or objects swept away by the water. In the event that the car gets blocked or begins to float, it can help to lower the windows before the electrical system fails in order to climb onto the roof as the water rises. The car, the sub-inspector explains, can act as an emergency boat and as a "vital shield".

Another element that worries the Firefighters, and which has been seen during these last few days of storms, is the need for certain citizens to record everything that is happening and even get too close to areas in danger of flooding. These behaviors, he explains, have led to rescues of people.

But behind every rescue there is enormous technical and human complexity. It is not a simple maneuver: for a single aquatic incident, it is necessary to mobilize at least seven personnel – five firefighters and one superior commander – and three specialized vehicles. Pellisa reminds us that the safety of the rescuers themselves is always the first premise to avoid adding new victims to the toll.