Tributes pour in for former Valencia footballer, 28, killed in Spanish flash floods - as up to 400 feared dead

By Flaminia Luck

A former Valencia footballer has died in the flash floods which engulfed parts of eastern Spain.

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158 people are confirmed dead following the extreme weather on Tuesday with approximately 250 feared missing.

Tributes have poured in for 28-year-old midfielder Jose Castillejo.

Before retiring in 2020, he left Valencia for Paterna in 2015 before spending stints at Eldense, Bunol, Recambios Colon, Roda, Torre Levante and Villamarxant.

La Liga champions Real Madrid's match against Valencia, which was scheduled for Saturday, has been postponed.

The Spanish Football Federation has postponed all matches in the Valencia region.

In a tweet, the club said: "Valencia mourn the passing of José Castillejo, casualty of the flash floodings

"José Castillejo came up through the @Academia_VCF youth system up to U18 level and played for others teams in the region.

"R.I.P."

Many streets are still blocked by piled-up vehicles and debris, in some cases trapping residents in their homes. Some places still do not have electricity, running water or stable telephone connections.

Residents turned to the media to appeal for help.

"This is a disaster. There are a lot of elderly people who don't have medicine. There are children who don't have food. We don't have milk, we don't have water. We have no access to anything," a resident of Alfafar, one of the most affected towns in south Valencia, told state television station TVE.

"No-one even came to warn us on the first day."

So far 158 bodies have been recovered, 155 in Valencia, two in the Castilla La Mancha region and one more in Andalusia, after Spain's deadliest natural disaster in living memory.

The security forces and soldiers are searching for an unknown number of missing people, many feared to still be trapped in wrecked vehicles or flooded garages.

Authorities are repeating over and over, more storms are expected.

The Spanish weather agency issued alerts for strong rains in Tarragona, Catalonia, and part of the Balearic Islands.