Former footballer Jose Castillejo has been named among those killed in Spanish floods which have left at least 205 dead.
Tributes have been paid to the 28-year-old midfielder, who played for Valencia’s under 19 team in his club career.
He also played for Paterna, Eldense, Bunol, Recambios Colon, Roda, Torre Levante, and Villamarxant before retiring in 2020.
It is understood Castillejo was living in the Valencia region - where the extreme weather hit on Tuesday. Untold numbers are still missing.
El @valenciacf lamenta profundamente el fallecimiento de José Castillejo, víctima de los desastres de la #DANA
— Valencia CF (@valenciacf) October 31, 2024
José Castillejo formó parte de la @Academia_VCF hasta etapa juvenil y ha militado en varios equipos de la Comunitat Valenciana.
DEP pic.twitter.com/glsR3UKTfF
Valencia piange José Castillejo, calciatore passato proprio per il settore giovanile del Valencia, scomparso nell’alluvione che ha colpito la città spagnola. Aveva 28 anni 🙏💔#Valencia #Calcio pic.twitter.com/IiJQYdde81
— Eurosport IT (@Eurosport_IT) November 1, 2024
"We regret the death of Jose Castillejo, a victim of the Dana disasters," a statement from Valencia football club read.
The club has postponed its match against Real Madrid, which had been scheduled for Saturday.
A related post added: “We are truly devastated and would like to reiterate our solidarity to the victims and affected families.
“We are at the disposal of the authorities in order to help in any way possible.”
Youth Valencia teams also paid their respects by holding a minute’s silence before matches this week.
Members of the security forces and soldiers are busy searching for an unknown number of missing people, many feared to still be trapped in wrecked vehicles or flooded garages.
Spanish media reported that at least 40,000 people were still without power.
Chiva Mayor Amparo Fort said: “Entire houses have disappeared. We don’t know if they are with or without people.”
But there are fears the situation could yet get worse, as more storms are expected.
The Spanish weather agency issued alerts for strong rains in Tarragona, Catalonia, as well as part of the Balearic Islands.
It has issued a red alert for rainfall along the coast of Huelva in the south-west of the country and called on people in the worst-hit areas to stay at home.
The British foreign office has updated its travel advice to warn people about the flooding.
