Spain Struggles Reopening Schools After Severe Floods Kill Hundreds
- Human Rights Research Center
- Nov 13, 2024
- 1 min read
November 13, 2024
Cited article by VOA News
HRRC highlights the ongoing climate crisis and pushes for funding to improve the resilience of schools and places of learning to natural disasters. Additionally, HRRC emphasizes the need for mental health support for both students and faculty who have been affected by the recent floods in Spain.
News Brief
Thousands of students in Spain’s eastern Valencia region returned to classes on Monday, two weeks after floods killed over 200 people and devastated towns in the region. Twenty-three people remain missing in Valencia after heavy rains caused rivers to overflow, drowning people in cars, underground car parks, and collapsing homes. Controversy over the regional government’s handling of the floods still continues.
A total of 47 schools in 14 affected municipalities reopened to more than 22,000 children and it is anticipated around 70% of students in the worst-affected areas to return this week. Educators requested the help of professional cleaning crews to sanitize facilities, as was done during the COVID-19 pandemic, but teachers and parents have begun cleaning the schools with their own materials. With concern for children's emotional states, regional teachers' union spokesperson Marc Candela announced that the department held an online course for teachers "with recommendations for psychological care, but had not dispatched additional counselors."
