Brit couple found dead days after Spain floods as King Felipe snaps back at furious survivors who pelted him with mud
Date: 2024-11-04A MISSING British couple have been found dead days after the devastating Spanish floods which have killed at least 217 people.
Don Turner, 78, and his wife, Terry, 74 were found in the town of Pedralba near Valencia, taking the number of Brits killed in the devastating floods to three.
The expats went missing on Tuesday after telling friends they were “popping out†to get gas.
The pair’s daughter, Ruth O’Loughlin, from Burntwood, Staffordshire, confirmed her parents’ bodies were found in their car on Saturday.
She told the BBC they had moved to Spain ten years ago as they “always wanted to live in the sunshine”.
Ruth said she had last spoken to then before they disappeared adding that her mum had been complaining about the rain.
She said: “Thursday morning I got a call from my nephew, who is very close to my parents, to say that my parents’ friends had called him to say they were missing and they’d been missing since Tuesday and they’d been looking for them.
“The bad thing about where mum and dad live is that there’s a bridge that’s collapsed so their friends are saying they’re more or less on an island, they couldn’t get away, but they have been searching the local area.
She described them as “very, very kind thoughtful people†who were “well-respected locallyâ€, adding: “I feel like I’m at my wits’ end now with what to do, I feel a bit stuck.”
The catastrophic floods have cost the lives of at least 217 people while searches for those missing continue today with the help of some 5,000 fresh soldiers who arrived over the weekend.
A crowd of furious survivors was seen hurling mud at the Spanish Royal couple during their first visit to the flood-ravaged region.
The barrage included a few rocks and other objects while residents chanted “murderers!” as King Felipe and Queen Letizia walked through the streets of Paiporta.
At some point, the King was seen snapping at a Valencian screaming at him and responding: “If you want, I won’t come and I’ll stay in Madrid.”
Two bodyguards were treated for injuries as one of them could be seen with a bloody wound on his forehead while officials also rushed Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez from the scene.
Police had to step in, some officers on horseback, to keep back the crowd of several dozen, some wielding shovels and poles.
Bodyguards opened umbrellas to protect the royals and other officials from the tossed muck.
After being forced to seek protection from the mud, King Felipe remained calm and made several efforts to speak to residents.
He was filmed patting two young men on their backs and sharing a quick embrace – with mud stains visible on his black rain coat.
According to a journalist for Spanish broadcaster RTVE near the King, one woman wept and told him she didn’t have food and nappies.
Footage showed people attacking the PM’s car, chasing the black SUV as police sirens were heard in the background.
A crowd surrounded the vehicle and repeatedly shouted “son of a b****†and “get out, ba****d” before some began to throw objects at the windows.
A separate video showed a group smashing and kicking the car as it attempted to make a turn and leave.
Queen Letizia was seen breaking down in tears as she spoke to survivors.
Regional Valencia President Carlo Mazón said: “I understand the social indignation and of course I stay to receive it. It is my political and moral obligation.â€
Speaking of King Felipe, who tried to reason with the angry crowds, he added: “The King’s attitude this morning was exemplary.â€
The number of people killed in the catastrophic floods is expected to rise – with some 2,000 people still missing across the country.
Torrential rains, storms and flooding hit the eastern coast last week marking the deadliest flash floods in Spain’s modern history.
Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has deployed 5,000 soldiers to help recover bodies and survivors, on top of the 2,000 already on the ground.
A further 5,000 police officers will also be dispatched to flood-hit areas, as well as a Spanish navy ship to accommodate helicopters.
Addressing the nation this weekend, the PM said: “We are talking about the largest deployment of state security forces and bodies of the armed forces that has ever been made in our country in times of peace.”
Another British man, aged 71, died in hospital last week after he was rescued by boat from his flooded home near Malaga.
He was suffering from hypothermia and died on Wednesday morning after going into organ failure.
Flooding hit the ravaged country again last night as torrents of water rushed down the streets of Tarragona, in the Catalonia region.
Shocking video showed several inches of water rushing past cars and flooding parts of the city.
