"I didn't want to die," said Valencia resident Juliano Sanchez. As a wall of water almost three metres high surged towards him, he did the only thing he could: cling to tall palm trees to stop himself being swept away. He held on for seven hours.

Juliano was not the only one fighting for his life as flash flooding in Spain's southern and eastern regions led to apocalypticReferring to the end of the world, or the collapse of civilisation. scenes of chaos and destruction. Survivors clung on to roofs, balconies and bridges after the region saw its heaviest rainfall in 28 years, causing rivers to burst their banks and flood entire towns and road networks.

Streets were transformed into furious rivers as the violent waters displaced cars and lampposts, uprooted trees and destroyed homes. Many were stuck inside, convinced of their impendingBe about to happen. deaths. "We were trapped like rats," said Ricardo Gabaldon, the mayor of a town in Valencia region.

With more than 150 people dead from the floods as we went to press, experts say that they expect the number of fatalities to rise as dozens remain missing. 

These are Spain's worst floods in at least three decades. Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez has already announced three days of national mourning, telling victims: "The whole of Spain weeps with you... we won't abandon you."

But authorities are also under scrutiny, as residents say that disaster relief officials were too slow to act on warnings of destructive weather, meaning that people were unable to take the necessary steps to protect themselves. The civil protection agency only issued a danger alert hours after several towns had already been flooded.

Some say it proves that we are underprepared for the devastation that the climate crisis is already wreaking. Scientists warn that although this is not the only factor causing extreme weather events, it makes them more frequent and more intense - more likely to cause serious damage. The Mediterranean hit its highest recorded temperature in August.

Throughout history, floods have often been a symbol of choice for the end of humanity. In the Book of Genesis, God sees the depravityMoral corruption. and violence of the Earth and decides to destroy his creation with a great flood. In the Epic of Gilgamesh from ancient Mesopotamia, the gods become irateFeeling great anger. at all the noise humans create and decide to wipe them out in a flood. In Norse mythology, the Earth is flooded with blood from the giant Ymir after he is slainKilled in a violent way..

And it has also long been a popular image in the dystopianRelating to an imagined society where there is great suffering or injustice.  imagination. In JG Ballard's 1962 science fiction novel The Drowned World, much of the Earth has become a boiling swamp thanks to global warming caused by solar radiation. In John Wyndham's 1953 novel The Kraken Wakes, alien invaders melt the polar ice caps to flood the world.

There seems to be an abundanceHaving lots of things or a particular thing. of bad omens for people concerned with the climate. This week, it was reported that Japan's Mount Fuji has remained snowless for the longest time since records began 130 years ago, the result of unusually warm weather.¹

Is this a warning to us all?

Yes: In the old tales of great floods, they are used as retributionA punishment given to somebody who is perceived to have done something wrong. for humanity's greed, sin and propensity for destruction. Huge floods like these warn us that we are destroying our planet without a second thought for victims like those in Spain.

No: This is a huge tragedy, but the reality is that extreme weather events will happen regardless of the climate crisis. It is purely random and we should not interpret it through the lens of superstition or omens.

Or... It is certainly a warning, but more than a warning of climate crisis, it warns us how underprepared we are for inevitable extreme weather events. Increasingly, governments are refusing to build the infrastructure we so clearly need to safeguard people in our changing world.

Apocalyptic - Referring to the end of the world, or the collapse of civilisation.

Impending - Be about to happen.

Depravity - Moral corruption.

Irate - Feeling great anger.

Slain - Killed in a violent way.

Dystopian - Relating to an imagined society where there is great suffering or injustice. 

Abundance - Having lots of things or a particular thing.

Retribution - A punishment given to somebody who is perceived to have done something wrong.