November 4, 2024 editorial of the New Anticapitalist Party-Revolutionaries (NPA-R) in France, translated from French
Cars engulfed, overturned, walls and furniture smashed, trees twisted, torn up, swept away by a deluge of mud; and then for days the surge of solidarity and rescue efforts, often improvised, searching the rubble for survivors, clearing the stricken streets to rebuild what is most urgent… images from the region of Valencia (Spain) can scarcely evoke the violence and shock suffered after the floods of last Tuesday and Wednesday. With 200 liters (about 50 gallons) of rainwater per square meter (about one square yard), the enormous wave, which reached a level of two meters in some places, swept away everything in its path. The provisional death toll stood at 213 on Sunday morning, while 1,900 people were still reported missing.
Yet there was nothing inevitable about this catastrophe.
The crushing responsibilities of the authorities and employers
Of course, nothing could stop the storm itself, a climatic hazard of exceptional force. But it had already been perfectly foreseen a week before. As Le Monde put it: “The authorities had all the information they needed to prepare an evacuation plan or ban non-essential travel.” And yet, neither the right-wing at the head of the region, nor the left-wing at the head of the country made the slightest move. Serious warning messages arrived only after the floods had already submerged roads and entire villages, trapping anyone trying to get home.
The economy had to keep moving! Some companies, such as Uber and Mercadona (a supermarket chain), forced their staff to continue working after the storm had begun. How many human lives have been lost for the sake of profits?
A year ago, in Madrid, the city’s mayor had launched an emergency plan in the face of similar flood risks, which in the end did not affect the city… by just a few kilometers. An intolerable mistake for the employers’ unions! At a time when global warming is accelerating the frequency of such extreme events, when protocols should be put in place to anticipate increased risks, the only barometer politicians are watching is the whining of employers and stock market prices.
Solidarity from below in the face of carelessness and slander from above
While the region’s population has not had rapid access to the minimum essentials for survival, notably food and water, the authorities have expressed indignation that some stores have been “looted”…
In reality, the population didn’t wait for official relief to arrive before organizing their own solidarity, with thousands of volunteers. And it was for the best! Not only was nothing done before the disaster struck, but the authorities waited until more than three days after the floods to launch an emergency mobilization plan involving thousands of firefighters, police and soldiers… some of whom will no doubt have the urgent task in their view of protecting the jewelers’ windows! So, when the King and Queen of Spain and the Prime Minister visited the region on Sunday, in an attempt to show emotion and calm people down, the locals greeted them with deserved booing and shouts of “Murderers! Murderers!,” they had to flee.
Yes, the bourgeoisie and its state have blood on their hands. In times of crisis, as in normal times, their profits come before our lives. The treasures of solidarity and self-sacrifice displayed by the working classes in the worst situations show that this is not inevitable. But to rebuild a new world, in Valencia as elsewhere, it’s the exploiters who have to be cleared off the road.
