Geospatial Technologies in Crisis Response: Analyzing the 2024 Floods in Valencia, Spain

Abstract

On October 29, 2024, a cut-off low (DANA) caused the most catastrophic flooding in recent history in Spain and the Mediterranean region, in Valencia, resulting in 228 deaths, more than €13 billion in damages, and the disabling of more than 140,000 vehicles. In the days following the disaster, a lack of information and a limited institutional response created a climate of uncertainty. In this context, satellite imagery became the only reliable source of information. This study adopts a systematic review methodology to reconstruct and critically analyze how geospatial technologies were used for forecasting, documenting, and managing the disaster. It draws on a compilation of meteorological datasets, satellite imagery (e.g., Sentinel, Landsat), GIS outputs, institutional maps, and academic research. The research identifies four chronological phases: First, meteorological data were employed to sound the alarm; second, satellite imagery products were used when the disaster already occurred; third, development of web platforms with geographic information and other institutional servers for data download; and four, new lines of research with the inputs generated in the previous points. The intervention of international coordination platforms—the Copernicus EMS rapid mapping service and the International Charter: Space and Major Disasters—allowed, in record time, the processing of the first satellite images and the expedited mapping of flooded areas. The findings demonstrate that spatial analysis tools are one of the most important inputs when dealing with a natural disaster, especially in the first hours and days following the event. However, prior territorial planning and the prompt intervention of decision-makers when such an event occurs are the most decisive factors in minimizing damage. The study also contrasts climate change-based explanations with historical-geographic interpretations of the disaster, underscoring the need for a comprehensive, geographically grounded approach to future risk management.

Highlights:

• Geospatial analysis and geography play a crucial role at the onset of global emergencies.
• At the onset of the event, international remote sensing platforms were the only valid source.
• Climate change and historical geography are the two approaches that explain these floods.
• After DANA, new flood models, hydrometeorological explanations, planning proposals and social vulnerability approaches were developed.