Devastating scenes in Spain after massive flash floods, government declares 3 days of national mourning

Spain has suffered heavy losses after the worst flash floods in its history .

Flash floods in Spain.

Flash floods in Spain have swept away cars, turned country roads into rivers, disrupted rail and highway links and killed at least 95 people in the worst natural disaster to hit the European country.

Heavy rains that began on Tuesday and continued on Wednesday caused flooding across a wide swath of southern and eastern Spain, stretching from Malaga to Valencia. The mudslides flipped cars off roads at high speeds, while pieces of wood swirled in the water along with household items. Police and rescue services used helicopters to evacuate people from their homes and rubber boats to reach motorists trapped on their roofs.

Cars piled up after flash floods.

Emergency services in the eastern region of Valencia confirmed the death toll at 92 on Wednesday. Two other casualties were reported in the neighbouring region of Castilla La Mancha, while southern Andalusia reported one death.

'It was the worst day of my life,' Ricardo Gabaldón, mayor of Utiel, a town in Valencia, told national broadcaster RTVE on Wednesday.

He said six residents had died and several others were still missing. "We were trapped like rats. Vehicles and trash cans were floating down the road. The water rose up to 3 meters high ," he said.

The Spanish government declared three days of national mourning starting Thursday.

" To those who are searching for their loved ones, all of Spain feels your pain ," Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said in a televised address.

The elderly are the most vulnerable.

Rescue workers and more than 1,100 soldiers from Spain's emergency response units have been deployed to affected areas. The Spanish central government has set up a crisis committee to coordinate rescue efforts.

The elderly are the most vulnerable. RTVE aired footage of seniors at a nursing home sitting in chairs and wheelchairs with water rising above their knees, and an army unit rescuing an elderly couple from the top floor of their home with the bucket of a bulldozer.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told reporters in Brussels that the EU would "support the coordination of rescue teams" using the Copernicus geo-monitoring satellite system. 'Europe stands ready to help,' Von der Leyen said.