At least 158 people have died in Spain’s worst flooding disaster in generations as rescuers battle odds to find survivors.<\/p>\n
On Thursday more than 1,200 workers, aided by drones, were deployed to the rescue mission as rains continued to threaten parts of the country.<\/p>\n
“Right now the most important thing is to save as many lives as possible,” Prime Minister Pedro S\u00e1nchez told victims in a visit to affected communities.<\/p>\n
But in some of the towns worst- hit in Tuesday night’s floods, people were left to the task of recovering bodies from the mud and wreckage.<\/p>\n
A least 155 deaths were recorded in Valencia, while another two have been recorded in Castilla-La Mancha to the province’s west, and another, a British man, in Andalusia.<\/p>\n
In the town of Paiporta, Valencia where a river burst its banks, at least 40 deaths have been recorded so far.<\/p>\n
“We all know someone who has died,” said pharmacist Miguel Guerrilla, standing outside his chemist shop which has been covered in thick mud.<\/p>\n
“It’s a nightmare.”<\/p>\n
On Thursday, the BBC saw undertakers and funeral vans retrieving bodies from the street, while on nearby roads, cars swept away by the storm surge were piled on top of each other.<\/p>\n
Motorists have recounted the horror of being trapped by the surging tides on Tuesday which turned highways and streets into rivers – many who survived climbed trees or bridges to escape.<\/p>\n