VALENCIA, Spain — Spain’s King Felipe VI and top government officials were pelted with mud by a mob of angry flood survivors in Spain during the first visit by the country’s leaders to the center of the suffering on Sunday.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez was evacuated from the scene, Spanish broadcaster RTVE reported, as the official contingent began marching through the muddy streets of Pai porta, one of the worst-hit areas where more than 60 people were killed and thousands of lives were destroyed.
Police had to intervene with several mounted officers to hold back the crowd of dozens who threw mud and waved shovels and sticks in the air in a threatening manner.
“Go away! Go away!” and “Murderers!” the crowd shouted, among other insults. Bodyguards opened umbrellas to protect the royals and officials as protesters hurled mud at them
After being forced to seek protection, the king remained calm and made several attempts to speak to individual residents. One person appeared to have been crying on his shoulder. He shook hands with a man.
It was an unprecedented incident for a royal house that takes great care to project an image of a monarch beloved by the nation.
But public anger over the haphazard management of the crisis reached boiling point on Sunday.
Queen Letizia and Valencia’s regional president, Carlo Mezon, were also in the contingent. The queen also spoke to women with small lumps of mud on their hands and arms.
More than 200 people have died in Tuesday’s floods and thousands have had their homes destroyed by the wall of water and mud. At least 60 of the dead were in Pai porta, an epicenter of the suffering.
Outrage over the management of Spain’s worst natural disaster in living memory began after the initial shock had worn off.
The floods began to fill Pai porta with crashing waves as regional officials sent a warning to mobile phones that sounded two hours late.
And further anger has been fueled by the failure of officials to respond quickly to the aftermath. Most of the clearing of the layers and layers of mud and debris that have invaded countless homes has been done by residents and thousands of volunteers.
“We’ve lost everything!” someone shouted.
Felipe insisted on trying to engage people in dialogue as he tried to continue his visit. He spoke to several people, patting two young men on the back and hugging each other quickly, his black raincoat stained with mud.
According to a journalist for Spanish broadcaster RTVE who was near Felipe, one woman was crying and told him she had no food or diapers, while another said “don’t abandon us.”
But after about half an hour of tension, the monarchs piled into official cars and left, escorted by mounted police.