BRUSSELS (Reuters) -The European Commission on Friday said it had earmarked an aid package of 945 million euros ($1.1 billion) to help Spain’s recovery from the deadliest flash floods in Spain’s modern history.
Almost 240 people died in the country after torrential rains last October triggered floods that swept through eastern and southeastern Spain. The most severely hit area was Valencia’s southern suburbs where more than 220 people died.
Spain allocated 2.3 billion euros in aid to reconstruct areas of the region hit by floods, which Prime Minister Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said were caused by climate change.
The European Commission said on Friday total earmarked aid for recovery from the floods would be close to 1.6 billion euros, with an additional 645 million euros coming from Spain’s cohesion funds that would be reallocated.
“This commitment reflects our determination to help member states build greater resilience and withstand future crises,” European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen said in the statement.
($1 = 0.8522 euros)
(Reporting by Alessandro Parodi, David Latona and Inti Landauro, editing by Bart Meijer)
