Spain's royals return to flood disaster zone for 1st time since being pelted by mud

BARCELONA, Spain — Spain's royal couple returned Tuesday to the area devastated by last month's catastrophic flooding for the first time since enraged survivors pelted them and top elected officials with mud on their first visit to the disaster zone.

King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia visited the town of Chiva along with a central government minister and the regional leader of eastern Valencia, whom many citizens have slammed for bungling the flood response.

No mud flew this time as Felipe and Letizia shook hands with people at the beginning of their tour of the village. Other spectators took photos.

Chiva, a hilltop town some 30 kilometers (20 miles) to the west of Valencia city, was ripped apart by a crushing wall of water that overflowed a normally dry gorge on the night of Oct. 29. Two of the four bridges spanning the gorge were demolished and several houses were washed away.

The royals, Spain's prime minister and Valencia's leader had attempted to visit a hard-hit neighborhood of Valencia's southern outskirts on Nov. 3 just a few days after the floods. But they had to cut it short when angry locals tossed mud and other objects on their arrival in Paiporta.

The royals withstood the vitriol for half an hour and spoke to several furious residents, but they eventually had to cancel the visit and postpone a subsequent stop planned for later that day in Chiva.

The floods claimed a confirmed 227 lives and destroyed thousands of homes and vehicles. The cleanup effort continues three weeks on.