Government asks all sporting events in southern Catalonia be suspended over rain alert

The government has asked for all sporting activities in southern Catalonia this weekend to be suspended, even if they are competitive.

Interior minister Núria Parlon made the call for the areas affected by intense rains, where high alerts are in place, in the counties of Ribera d'Ebre, Baix Ebre, Montsià and Terra Alta.

The minister again made "a call to maintain and exercise extreme caution" in the Terres de l'Ebre region, to "avoide unnecessary travel, stay away from streams and ravines, even if it is not raining."

Parlon explained that the forecast is for rains to continue through the weekend and, therefore, the flood plan alert will have to be maintained.

However, it's expected that from Monday, the rains will begin to ease up.

The first convoys of the Barcelona City Council has left the city on their way to Valencia.

A first convoy left early this Saturday morning made up of 32 professionals, including firefighters and health personnel, and 10 support vehicles, on the way to the town of Paiporta.

A second contingent left around 11 am, consisting of 27 local police officers and 12 emergency response agents.

15,000 volunteers in Valencia

About 15,000 people have gathered on Saturday morning at the City of Arts and Sciences in Valencia to volunteer to help those affected by the floods.

The volunteers have been queuing since before 7 am, responding to the call of the Valencian government which urged them to gather at this point in the city to organize.

In the first two hours, around 5,000 people had left on a hundred buses towards the towns most affected by the disaster.

The Valencian vice-president, Susana Camarero, has said that the quantity of people has exceeded forecasts and has asked that no more people come because it is not possible to organize everybody, but the same volunteer operation will take place on Sunday.

The Volunteer Platform of the Valencian Region consists of a hundred people organizing the thousands of volunteers who have turned up to help out.

The volunteers brought brooms and equipment to clean the villages and help the residents to remove water, mud and remains of furniture that block streets and houses.

Before getting on the buses, however, they passed a Volunteer Platform filter, which checked that the brooms were suitable and, if not, gave them strong ones to clean the mud.

They were also given a T-shirt, gloves and masks to protect themselves from possible infections, as well as food and water to get them through the day.

10,000 more police and soldiers deployed

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has announced the "immediate" deployment of an extra 5,000 National Police and Civil Guard officers and 5,000 army personnel to deal with the situation.

He also said that the Spanish government is "ready to help" the Valencian administration and "will mobilize all the necessary resources."

Sánchez announced that the death toll has officially risen to 211 in Valencia on Saturday morning.

The Spanish leader called the floods "the biggest natural disaster in recent history" in the country, and the second biggest in terms of fatalities in Europe.

"It is the most serious flood that our continent has seen this century and I am aware that the response that is being given is not sufficient," he admitted, but reiterated that the Spanish executive has resources to help the councils and the regional government.

Sánchez admits "serious shortcomings" in flood response

Sánchez admitted that he is "aware" that the response offered so far "is not sufficient" and that there are "serious problems and shortcomings," but ruled out taking over the flood response management from the Valencian regional president.

"It is not about the state replacing the regional administration, now it must be supported," the PM said, calling for "unity" and to "forget ideologies and discrepancies." "There will be time to clear up responsibilities," assured the Socialist leader, who also said that it will be necessary to "analyze negligence."

Once the emergency is resolved it will be necessary to "reflect" on the distribution of powers in cases of extreme situations like the current floods, Sánchez said.

The Spanish PM also remarked that we must "respect scientific advice" and adapt to climate change.