Police Divers Find Submerged Car Amid Recovery Efforts After Deadly Floods in Mallorca

Recovery efforts continued in Mallorca, Spain, on Oct. 22, after the region was hit by severe flooding earlier in the month.

The footage above was shared by Guardia Civil that said it located a car submerged in 10 feet (3 meters) of water around 820 feet (250 meters) from the shore.

The final death toll from the floods reached 13 on Oct. 17, following the discovery of the body of a 9-year-old boy. The car he had been traveling in with his mother and sister was swept away by the flood, according to The Local.

The mother and the sister survived.

The boy’s family members released a statement on Sunday, publicly thanking those involved in the search for their son, according to the report.

“Despite all of the tough moments that we are going through we must thank all of those who are continuing to tirelessly search for Artur,” the statement read.

In earlier reporting, two people were found dead in a flood-ravaged area of Mallorca on Oct. 11, emergency services said, bringing the number of people killed after heavy rain hit the Spanish resort island to at least 12.

The bodies of a man and a woman were recovered near the eastern town of Arta, close to the place where a car belonging to a missing German couple was found earlier.

A British couple, a Dutch woman, and another German man were also among the dead, emergency services said.

Heavy rain hit the island on Oct. 9, sending torrents of brown water along narrow streets in the eastern town of Sant Llorenc. Rivers burst their banks and swamped homes, leaving roadsides strewn with wrecked vehicles and beaches covered in debris.

Survivor Manuel Torrescusa described having to swim out of his car through a window to safety.

“I swam 500 meters [1,640 feet] through the torrent until I got to a house,” he said, according to the Daily Mail. “I hardly had any clothes on me as they all got caught on a metal fence when I was swimming.”

A senior official from the Sant Llorenc des Cardassar Mayor’s Office, Antonia Bauza, told radio station Cadena Ser that people were trapped in their homes and called the situation “a disaster.”

Hundreds of locals and tourists were trapped in partially submerged homes. Many clung to balconies, rooftops, and even trees waiting to be rescued.

Mallorca-born tennis star Rafael Nadal assisted in relief efforts. He invited people affected by the disaster to take shelter at his tennis academy in nearby Manacor.

“As we did yesterday we offer today the facilities of @rnadalacademy for all those who need accommodation,” the sports celebrity said in a tweet.

“Sad day in Majorca,” the 32-year-old athlete said on Twitter. “My sincere condolences to the relatives of the deceased and injured by the severe floods in San Llorenc.”

Credit: Guardia Civil via Storyful

Reuters contributed to this report.