Mother and daughter die after floodwaters collapse wall during Tarragona storm

Fatal collapse at marina market

A mother and her daughter (reported as 17 or 18 years old) have died at Joan XXIII Hospital in Tarragona following injuries sustained during torrential weekend storms. The victims belonged to a family of vendors who had finished operating their seasonal night stall on Avenida Bélgica near the marina in Roda de Berà. Heavy floodwaters destabilised and knocked down a concrete wall separating the street from an adjacent private residential property, crushing the stall where they were resting alongside the girl's grandfather, who also suffered injuries. Generalitat firefighters rescued the victims from the debris and transferred both women to intensive care in critical condition. Catalan President Salvador Illa offered his condolences to the relatives of the victims on Wednesday.

It is news that strikes us deeply. All my support in these very painful moments.

Weekend devastation across Costa Dorada

The storm struck the comarcas of Tarragonès and Baix Penedès during the early hours of Saturday, causing severe flooding in coastal municipalities including El Vendrell, Torredembarra, Altafulla, Creixell, and Roda de Berà. Runoff submerged urban roadways, residential basements, and seaside camping grounds throughout the region. Emergency Medical Services (SEM) treated approximately 40 people across the affected localities, transferring 11 injured individuals to regional hospitals and local health centres. Floodwaters also forced the evacuation of 300 people from the Arc de Berà campsite. More than 100 displaced campers spent the night in a municipal sports pavilion before returning to inspect the damage the following morning.

Second storm and transit disruptions

A second storm system swept across the province of Tarragona on Monday, triggering nearly 500 firefighter interventions and leaving approximately 30 people injured. Severe downpours flooded multiple neighbourhoods across the provincial capital and cut electricity supplies to urban power subscribers. Fallen trees struck tents and bungalows at regional tourist campsites, although no further critical injuries were reported from that second deluge. Torrential runoff obstructed railway corridors, prompting transport operator Rodalies to suspend services across lines R14, RT1, R16, R17, and RT2 before rail crews reopened single-track operations on Tuesday morning.

Scrutiny over emergency mobile alerts

The fatalities have intensified political scrutiny over the decision by Catalan Civil Protection authorities not to transmit mobile ES-Alert warnings prior to either storm. Opposition parties in the Parliament of Catalonia, including Junts, Comuns, the People's Party, and Vox, formally demanded that Interior Minister Núria Parlon appear before lawmakers to explain the absence of emergency broadcasts. Government spokesperson Sílvia Paneque defended the protocol, stating that the decision was taken collectively based on technical criteria and weather forecasts that did not reach mandatory alert thresholds.

A review is always carried out by the technical services themselves to see if there is any improvement to be incorporated.

Local leaders including Roda de Berà Mayor Pere Virgili and El Vendrell officials called for structural modifications to railway embankments to prevent them from acting as dams during heavy rains. The Roda de Berà town council declared two official days of mourning and scheduled a civic minute of silence for Wednesday.