Spanish follow-up survey finds lasting distress after the 2024 floods

Almost half the adults surveyed in areas affected by Spain’s 29 October 2024 floods reported moderate or high psychological distress fifteen to eighteen months later. The health ministry released the first follow-up findings on 12 November, based on interviews conducted from February to April 2026.

The study completed 7,496 interviews with residents aged six and over, including 6,180 adults. Among adults, distress was more common in women, at 54.8%, than men, at 41.9%. More severe flood exposure was associated with more symptoms compatible with probable post-traumatic stress disorder.

The ministry stresses that questionnaire screening provides population estimates rather than individual diagnoses. Two further follow-up phases are planned approximately one and two years after the first to examine how symptoms and recovery develop.