700 more Catalan volunteers head to Valencia for flood recovery efforts

The initiative 'Catalan DANA Volunteers' will send about 700 more volunteers in buses to Valencia on Friday to help in the flood affected areas. 

More than 6,200 volunteers have registered to help and the organization has already collected around €80,000, said spokesperson Jordi Graupera. 

After a first trip last weekend with more than a hundred volunteers to help in the flood-affected areas, 700 will join this weekend. 

The volunteers will leave on Friday and return on Sunday, and are expected to work intensively during the three days in the most affected towns, such as Paiporta, Picassent, Sedaví or Alfafar.

The cost of sending ten buses with 700 volunteers is estimated at €70,000. For this reason, the organization is calling for more economic donations to maintain the aid. "We need everyone's help," said Graupera. 

Another spokesperson for the initiative, David Silvestre, insisted that "a lot" of food and basic necessities are being received and that the problem is not a lack of it. Instead, he called for economic aid. 

The organization also urged volunteers not to travel alone, as a lack of coordination between authorities, organizations and volunteers could lead to a "collapse" of the situation. 

"We do not send anyone who is not coordinated, who does not have an assigned task, without insurance or the material to make it safe and in hygienic conditions," Graupera said.

Bizum users donate more than €19m in a week

Users of the Bizum payment service in Spain donated more than €19 million in a single week to those affected by the floods in Valencia.

The banking platform has habilitated Bizum codes for NGOs so that its users can donate directly through Bizum.

If you want to make a donation, go to the donations page on Bizum and then enter the code of the desired NGO.

• Valencia Food Bank: 38400
• Red Cross: 33512 
• Save the Children España: 33357
• Cáritas: 00089
• Oxfam: 08033
• World Central Kitchen: 03843

Opens Arms sends ship to Valencia

The Catalan NGO Open Arms has sent its ship to Valencia to help in the search for victims.

The ship will leave Tarragona on Wednesday afternoon with a crew of between 15 and 20 people and will arrive in Valencia on Thursday or Friday. 

The goal of the organization is to help in the search for people who could have been swept into the sea by the current.