Floods and DANA in Spain: before, during and after

A DANA (depresión aislada en niveles altos, formerly gota fría) is the autumn downpour that within a few hours turns the dry ramblas and streets of Valencia, the Costa Blanca and Murcia into rivers. This guide is built from primary sources: AEMET, Protección Civil, DGT, the Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros and the BOE. It is written to be read on a phone — in short points. The focus is the Comunitat Valenciana, but the rules apply across Spain.

In 60 seconds: the essentials

1. Check the colour of your area on the AEMET map (aemet.es → Avisos). Red: do not travel.
2. ES-Alert is a loud signal with text on the screen. Read it, tell your neighbours, follow it.
3. Up, not down. Leave the basement, garage and ground floor; switch off the electricity.
4. Do not cross water, by car or on foot. Car stuck or water rising — get out through the window, onto the roof.
5. 112 is the single emergency number. Address and municipality first, then briefly what happened.
6. Afterwards: photos of everything before cleaning → insurer or Consorcio (900 222 665) → keep remains and receipts.

Before: reading the warnings

AEMET colours

AEMET publishes avisos up to 72 hours ahead. What the levels mean, as AEMET itself puts it:

| Level | Hazard | AEMET's recommendation | | ---------- | --------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Yellow | low, but vulnerable people and property in exposed areas could suffer some impact | «Esté atento» — follow the forecast | | Orange | significant, serious impacts possible | «Esté preparado» — take precautions | | Red | extraordinary, very serious or catastrophic impacts possible | act on the authorities' instructions, do not travel unless strictly necessary |

AEMET adds a caveat: the colour describes the hazard of the phenomenon, while your risk depends on where you are and how vulnerable you are. A home next to a rambla or on the ground floor is a high risk even at yellow.

Protección Civil classifies rain intensity as follows: fuertes — 15–30 mm per hour, muy fuertes — 30–60 mm per hour, torrenciales — more than 60 mm per hour. When the forecast says «torrenciales», it is not a figure of speech.

The Avisos 1·1·2 Comunitat Valenciana app

The Valencian 112 service has an app, Avisos 1·1·2 Comunitat Valenciana (Android and iOS, links on 112cv.gva.es): it shows the status of weather warnings across the region, and its advice-to-the-public section works without internet. Install it in advance — during a storm the connection may drop.

ES-Alert: what it is and what not to expect

ES-Alert is Spain's version of EU-Alert on Cell Broadcast technology: the message goes out from the masts to every phone in the coverage area. Facts per the Protección Civil page:

• No registration or app needed. The system has no access to your location.
• Language: Spanish and, where applicable, the region's co-official language. The centre may add a second language — «usually English» — shown on a phone set to a non-Spanish language. Ukrainian and Russian are not promised.
• It arrives on a locked phone, in silent mode and in «do not disturb». A phone that is off or out of coverage will not receive it.
• Switching off the «Alerta de Protección Civil» level is not possible. The «Pre-Alerta» level can be disabled in settings.
• Technical: works on 4G and 5G networks. Phones running Android 8 or older do not receive the alerts; on Android 11 or newer and on iOS 15.6 or newer it is configured automatically.
• When you receive one: stay calm, read the text, warn people nearby, follow the instructions, keep an eye on radio and TV. The volume-down button silences the sound without dismissing the message.

Preparing the home and the car

Protección Civil's recommendations (the «Medidas de autoprotección» infographics, our translation):

• Remove from the balcony, terrace and yard anything the water could carry away.
• Check the roof, downpipes and nearby drains — the water must be able to run off.
• Documents and hazardous substances go up, to the upper part of the home.
• Do not park in dry riverbeds or on riverbanks — the crecida comes suddenly.

From us, in addition: photograph the flat and the car before the DANA season (wide shots, appliances, furniture). It is free evidence of the «before» state for the perito. Tenants benefit from a contents policy (contenido): without one the Consorcio has nothing to pay you for — see the money section and the guide on renting a flat.

During: what to do

At home

Per Protección Civil:

1. Follow the forecast on the radio and other media.
2. If the home is flooding — leave the basement and lower floors as soon as possible.
3. Switch off the electricity and use a torch.
4. Keep away from rivers, streams and low ground; head for higher ground.

In the car

Protección Civil and DGT, in our words:

• Do not cross a flooded stretch — by car or on foot. Turn around and find another route. On an autopista or autovía, at a «balsa de agua» — call 112 and wait in a safe place.
• If you must drive, prefer autopistas and autovías; keep away from riverbeds and slopes.
• Avoid stretches with a current even if it looks harmless: the water drags the car.
• Leave the car if: it gets stuck; the water level is rising; the water is above the wheel axles or knee-deep (Protección Civil). DGT's magazine gives figures: at 20 cm steering is already hard, from 30 cm the car is swept away.
• Get out through the window, not the door — the door lets in water and debris. Take off the seat belt, exit on the side facing the current.
• If the current stops you reaching safety — onto the roof (not the bonnet), and try to be visible to rescuers.

More on a car on foreign plates and compulsory insurance in the guide on a foreign-plated car.

Who to call: 112

112 is the single emergency number. In the Comunitat Valenciana the 112 centre does not dispatch services itself: it receives, coordinates and passes on the call. According to its page, calls are answered in Spanish, Valencian and «several languages»; the GVA press office names English, French and German.

For deaf and hard-of-hearing callers, 112 Comunitat Valenciana has an SMS line, 638 444 346 (SMS only, no voice calls).

After: the first 7 days

1. 1

   Safety and photos

   Do not go back into the basement or garage until the water has gone; photograph everything before cleaning up.

2. 2

   Notify your insurer or the Consorcio

   Within 7 days if possible: phone 900 222 665 or the form on consorseguros.es; write down the claim number.

3. 3

   Keep what was damaged

   Remains of items until the perito visits; if impossible, photos before removal; every receipt for urgent repairs.

4. 4

   Gather the documents

   Policy and premium receipt, estimates and invoices, 24-digit IBAN, for cars: make, model and plate.

5. 5

   No insurance: Delegación del Gobierno

   Aid application under RD 307/2005 within 1 month; certificado de empadronamiento and lease as evidence.

Money: the Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros

The main thing a newcomer needs to know: flood damage in Spain is covered not by your insurer but by the public Consorcio de Compensación de Seguros (CCS) — through a surcharge (recargo) already built into your ordinary policy. So «my insurance does not cover floods» almost always means «the Consorcio pays, not the company».

What it pays

The Consorcio compensates losses from riesgos extraordinarios occurring in Spain and affecting risks located in Spain (Estatuto, art. 6.1). Among them is inundación extraordinaria: flooding of land by rainwater, meltwater, water from rivers, lakes with a natural outlet and natural watercourses that overflow their banks, and by the sea (RD 300/2004, art. 2.1.c).

Not an inundación extraordinaria: water from dams, canals, sewers and collectors that burst for reasons other than an extraordinary event, and rain falling directly on the insured property or collected by its roof, drainage or yards.

An official declaration of «catástrofe» or «zona catastrófica» is not required for a payout — the Consorcio says so explicitly.

Storms and strong wind

The Consorcio's list of covered natural phenomena (Estatuto, art. 6.1 — the same list that names the inundación extraordinaria) also includes the tempestad ciclónica atípica. RD 300/2004, art. 2.1, defines it as extremely adverse weather produced by:

• violent tropical cyclones — wind above 96 km/h averaged over 10 minutes together with rain above 40 litres per square metre per hour;
• intense cold lows with Arctic air — wind above 84 km/h averaged over 10 minutes, with very low temperatures;
• tornadoes;
• vientos extraordinarios — gusts above 120 km/h, a gust being the highest wind speed sustained over 3 seconds.

So the 120 km/h gust figure and the 84/96 km/h averaged-wind figures are parts of one legal definition, not a conflict; ordinary storm damage below those thresholds is a matter for your private policy. The rule is the same as for floods: the Consorcio pays only those whose policy carries its recargo, for the items and sums in that policy.

Who is covered

There is one rule (Estatuto, art. 8.1–8.2): the Consorcio pays those who paid the recargo in its favour, exactly for the persons and items and up to the sums stated in the policy. The surcharge is carried by policies in the lines «vehículos terrestres», «incendio y elementos naturales», «otros daños a los bienes» and their combined forms (multirriesgo), and by motor responsabilidad civil (art. 7.b); for people, life insurance against death and accident insurance (art. 7.a).

| Your situation | What is covered | | ------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Owner with multirriesgo del hogar | building and/or contents — up to the policy sums | | Tenant with a contents policy | your belongings; walls and fixtures are the owner's business and the owner's policy | | Tenant without a policy | the Consorcio pays nothing: no policy, no recargo | | Car with own-damage cover (full or partial) | damage to the car, the whole insurable interest even if the ordinary policy covers it only partly (RD 300/2004, art. 5.4) | | Car with third-party (responsabilidad civil) only | the Consorcio states that since July 2016 such policies also include the recargo — confirm with your insurer | | Car on foreign plates | the Estatuto refers to «vehículos con matrícula española» — ask the Consorcio or your insurer | | Business (premises, stock, equipment) | per the property policy; loss of profit only if insured and resulting from direct damage |

Nationality and immigration status are not mentioned in these articles: the condition is the policy and the risk being located in Spain (Estatuto, art. 6.2).

What it does not pay

From RD 300/2004 (art. 6) and the Consorcio's own exclusion list — what most often breaks expectations after a storm:

• Leaks, seepage and damp (goteras, filtraciones, humedades) and rain on the roof — that goes to your insurer under the ordinary policy, if it covers them.
• Damage due to a defect or manifest lack of maintenance of the property (art. 6.c).
• Rising groundwater, landslides and ground settlement — except where they were manifestly caused by the same rain that produced an inundación extraordinaria in the area at the same time (art. 6.g).
• Losses from electricity or gas supply cuts (art. 6.l).
• Damage before the first premium is paid or while the policy is suspended for non-payment (art. 6.k).
• Events the Government classifies as «catástrofe o calamidad nacional» (art. 6.m) — the Consorcio notes this has never happened in its history.

Excess (franquicia) per the Consorcio FAQ: 7 % of the indemnifiable property damage — but it does not apply to homes, residential owners' communities, cars with a motor policy or personal insurance. So for a flat and a car there is no excess; for a shop or office, 7 %.

How to file a claim

The claim is filed by the insured, the policyholder, their representatives, or the insurer, agent or broker — ask your insurer to do it if that is easier. Channels:

• Phone 900 222 665, 09:00–18:00, Monday to Friday. The Consorcio states the centre is also available in English and French. Ukrainian and Russian are not listed.
• Online at consorseguros.es: for property, with your access credentials; for personal injury you need a certificado digital or DNI electrónico.
• On paper — in person or by post at the Consorcio's regional Delegación, or through your insurer, agent or broker; fax and e-mail are not accepted.

Have at hand: the insurer and policy number; NIF/NIE; 24-digit IBAN; for a car, make, model and plate. You will be given a claim number (also sent by e-mail or SMS), then a perito — the Consorcio's assessor — will visit. The valuation is done by the Consorcio itself; your insurer's valuation does not bind it (RD 300/2004, art. 10).

For the perito prepare: repair estimates and invoices, two copies (original and copy) of the policy and the premium receipt. Keep the remains of damaged items until the visit; if that is impossible, photograph them before removal. Keep receipts for urgent repairs. Claim status: «Consulta de expedientes en curso» on the website.

Deadlines

• Report the loss — within 7 days of learning of it, if possible (Ley 50/1980, art. 16); otherwise the insurer may claim the damage caused by the delay. The Consorcio states it will accept a claim after the 7 days — but «lo antes posible».
• Limitation period — under the Ley de Contrato de Seguro: 2 years for property insurance and 5 years for personal insurance (art. 23). That these periods also apply to the Consorcio is our inference from Estatuto art. 8.2 («conforme a la ley española de contrato de seguro») — the Consorcio itself names no period on its page.

No insurance: state aid

An uninsured person has no direct right to compensation. Ley 17/2015 says all residents of Spain are entitled to assistance from the authorities in a disaster within available means (art. 5.1), and that recovery measures are aid, not compensation (art. 20.3). What actually exists:

• The general aid line, RD 307/2005. Beneficiaries: families and households with personal or material damage, small businesses with under 50 employees, owners' communities (art. 5.1). The application goes to the province's Delegación or Subdelegación del Gobierno within 1 month of the day after the events ended (art. 7.1). Aid is for the vivienda habitual (the place of actual, permanent residence, art. 15.3), with an income test based on the IPREM (art. 16) and subsidiary to any other payment, including insurance (Protección Civil).
• A «zona afectada gravemente» declaration. The Consejo de Ministros may declare an area affected and approve measures under art. 24 of Ley 17/2015: aid for the vivienda habitual and essential household goods, aid for businesses, preferential ICO loans. The wording is «se podrán» — the package differs every time, and aid is also possible without a declaration (disposición adicional 4ª).
• The 2026 precedent. RDL 5/2026, for the storms in Andalucía and Extremadura, raised the RD 307/2005 caps (to 60,480 € for a totally destroyed vivienda habitual) and dropped the income test — for that event only. There, resident status was proved with a certificado de empadronamiento, and tenants only needed their lease.

Lost documents

TIE. Loss, destruction or damage of the card is grounds for issuing a new one on request; it is not a renewal, and the card is valid until the old one's date (RD 1155/2024, art. 209.9). The form is EX17 with the box «duplicado por robo, extravío, destrucción o inutilización», the fee is modelo 790 código 012, and it is filed at any Oficina de Extranjería or Comisaría de Policía (Policía Nacional page). Whether a police report (denuncia) is also needed we did not find in primary sources — ask when booking. If you plan to travel abroad before receiving the card, an autorización de regreso is issued in case of loss provided you prove you applied for the duplicate (art. 5). On the NIE itself, see the guide on the NIE for Ukrainians.

Driving licence (Spanish). A duplicate for loss or damage is requested from the DGT; you get a provisional permit, valid only in Spain, and the permanent one arrives by post in roughly a month and a half. The fee is payable even in case of theft (DGT). After a «zona afectada gravemente» declaration the Consejo de Ministros may waive DGT fees for duplicates of driving and vehicle permits destroyed by the disaster (Ley 17/2015, art. 24.2.a.5º) — only if it adopts that measure.

Ukrainian passport. The procedure for replacing it or obtaining a temporary document is set by the Ukrainian consulate — see the website of the Embassy of Ukraine in Spain (spain.mfa.gov.ua) and the consulate general in Barcelona. We did not verify that procedure — consular sites are not available for automated checking, and the rules change.

Padrón. The register entry does not disappear: a new certificado is requested from the ayuntamiento. How — in the guide on empadronamiento.

Work: if you cannot get there or the business has stopped

• You cannot reach work. Estatuto de los Trabajadores, art. 37.3.g (introduced by RDL 8/2024 in November 2024): up to 4 days when you cannot reach the workplace or use the necessary roads because of recommendations, restrictions or bans by the authorities, and in a serious and imminent risk, including a disaster or adverse weather event. After 4 days the leave is extended while the circumstances persist, and the company may apply a suspension or reduction for fuerza mayor (art. 47.6). Whether this absence is paid — check the article's text and with your employer: we do not assert it here.
• ERTE for fuerza mayor. The company may suspend contracts or cut working hours for temporary fuerza mayor; its existence is confirmed by the autoridad laboral (ET, art. 47.5). After a «zona afectada gravemente» declaration, dismissals, suspensions and reductions directly caused by the disaster count as fuerza mayor (Ley 17/2015, art. 24.2.b.1º), and companies get a moratorium of up to 1 year, interest-free, on Seguridad Social contributions for 3 consecutive months (art. 24.2.b.2º).
• Autónomo. Ceasing activity due to fuerza mayor gives a right to the prestación por cese de actividad (LGSS, art. 331.1.b). Proof: documents on the event and the impossibility of working (art. 332). The application is due by the last day of the month following the cessation; for fuerza mayor the period runs from the date shown in the documents proving it (art. 337.2). The general conditions (contribution record, no arrears) are in art. 330 — check them with your mutua. On registration and obligations, see the guide on autónomo.

What we could not confirm

• 112 in Ukrainian — no official page says the 2022 service is running now.
• ES-Alert in Ukrainian — not provided; only Spanish, the co-official language and, at the centre's discretion, English.
• Denuncia for a TIE duplicate — we did not find the requirement in primary sources; we assert neither «needed» nor «not needed».
• Duplicate of the temporary-protection card — no specific procedure found in primary sources; we rely on the general art. 209.9.
• State aid for foreigners and temporary-protection beneficiaries — the law is silent; moreover Ley 17/2015 art. 21.1 speaks of damage to «bienes que cuenten con la cobertura de un seguro» while Protección Civil calls the aid subsidiary — we did not resolve that contradiction.
• Car on foreign plates and the Consorcio — the Estatuto speaks of «matrícula española»; ask the Consorcio.
• Limitation period for Consorcio claims (2 and 5 years) — our inference from Estatuto art. 8.2, not a direct statement by the Consorcio.
• Replacing a Ukrainian passport — consular pages are not available for checking.

Common mistakes

• Going down to the garage «for a minute» for the car. Protección Civil: basements and ground floors are for leaving, not entering.
• Driving through «where it's shallow». DGT: from 30 cm the car is swept away; Protección Civil: knee-deep water — leave the car.
• Waiting for a «disaster zone» declaration before calling the Consorcio. It is not required — call within the first 7 days.
• Throwing out spoiled items before the perito. Remains are kept until the visit; if impossible — photos.
• Assuming «insurance does not cover floods». The Consorcio pays under your own policy — call 900 222 665.
• Renting a flat without a contents policy. No policy — no recargo — no payout.
• Missing the month for the Delegación del Gobierno application. The RD 307/2005 deadline is 1 month from the day the events ended.

This article is for reference and describes the general rules; aid measures after a specific disaster are approved by separate decretos and differ every time — check aemet.es (warnings), proteccioncivil.es (ES-Alert, aid), consorseguros.es (payouts) and the BOE. Facts were checked against these sources on 3 October 2026. If you need a Russian- or Ukrainian-speaking lawyer or gestor — see our verified directory.