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Thousands of protesters flooded the streets of Valencia on Saturday, rallying against the regional president, Carlos Mazón, over his administration's handling of recent catastrophic floods that resulted in over 200 fatalities. The protest, which demanded Mazón’s resignation, underscored public outrage at the perceived failure and delayed emergency response.

The protestors, starting their march from Valencia's city hall, faced a tumultuous clash with riot police, who intervened with batons. Demonstrators wielded homemade signs and chanted slogans such as "Mazón Resign!" and "You Killed Us!" to show their discontent. Some even smeared mud on the regional government's building as a symbolic gesture of the calamity.

Mazón, from the conservative Popular Party, has been under intense scrutiny after his administration delayed issuing flood alerts to residents' cellphones, hours after the floods began on October 29. Earlier that day, Spain's weather agency had issued a red alert, the highest level of warning, at 7:30 a.m., but it wasn't until after 8 p.m. that the regional alerts were sent out.

Addressing the situation, Mazón stated to the regional broadcaster, À Punt, that accountability would be addressed in due course. He emphasized that the current focus should be on cleaning up, assisting affected people, and rebuilding the damaged areas. Yet, critics argue that his administration's response was both slow and chaotic.

Community members, particularly from Valencia's southern outskirts, were among the first to step in, with thousands of volunteers providing initial aid. In contrast, it took days for the authorities to mobilize additional police reinforcements and soldiers, which had been requested from the central government.

Sara Sánchez Gurillo, attending the protest in a show of personal grief and anger, recounted how her brother-in-law, 62-year-old Candido Molina Pulgarín, perished in his flooded home in Cheste. She condemned both regional and national leaders for their handling of the situation, accusing them of failing to provide timely evacuations and adequate warnings.

The flood, which claimed 220 lives, primarily in the Valencia region, has left thousands homeless, with streets still inundated with mud and debris even 11 days after the disaster. The tragedy has not only claimed lives but has also fueled a widespread sense of abandonment and distrust in leadership among the Valencian populace.