Nearly 400 people, affected people and relatives of those who died in the DANA on October 29, attended this Monday the funeral mass in the Cathedral of Valencia presided over by the Archbishop of Valencia, Enrique Benavent, occupying the preferential place of the Seo in the central nave. The ceremony, held at the request of the archbishopric, was attended by the kings of Spain, the first vice president of the Government and Minister of Finance, María Jesús Montero; the Minister of Territorial Policy and Democratic Memory, Ángel Víctor Torres; the Minister of Science, Innovation and Universities, Diana Morant; the Government delegate in the Valencian Community, Pilar Bernabé and the president of the Generalitat Valenciana, Carlos Mazón, as well as mayors of the affected municipalities. The religious event honors the 222 fatalities in the community and the thousands affected by the floods, a consequence of the storm.
The cathedral opened its doors at 5:30 p.m. to assist residents of the affected areas. The municipal parishes have enabled private transportation services and a bus from Paiporta, the town with the most fatalities. According to the Episcopal Vicar Jesús Corbí, whose vicariate includes, among other localities, Torrent, Paiporta, Picanya, Catarroja, Alfafar, Silla, “from the parishes we have contacted many families and the relatives who wanted to attend the mass have been able to do so. through the telephone enabled in the Archbishopric.”
The mass took place in front of a powerful security device at the entrances to the cathedral and the central squares of the city. A small group of protesters protested in the Plaza de la Reina, next to the temple, with some proclamations against the president of the Generalitat, Carlos Mazón. “Your incompetence meant the death of our relatives,” they cry, with banners carrying the image of the Valencian president, whom they call a “murderer.” Mazón has entered through the back door, accompanied by the Murcian president, Fernando López Miras, and his Aragonese counterpart, Jorge Azcón; In contrast, the businessman Juan Roig, who entered through the main door of the Cathedral, was applauded. The president of the PP, Alberto Núñez Feijóo, has arrived late to the appointment. The Valencian leader refuses to make an official act with the victims, although he has assured that the Generalitat is in permanent contact.
Some relatives, as a sign of protest, have abandoned the religious rite upon the arrival of the authorities. This is the case of Sonia Fuster, a native of Picanya, who lost her father, from the same town, on the night of October 29. “I could not share the space of mass with those responsible for my father’s death. When we saw them arrive, we got up and left in silence. I am apolitical, but those responsible for this have been the politicians, the Generalitat Valenciana did not do its job well and nothing happens here. I was in the two demonstrations, it is shameful that no one has resigned: in a private company when you do not comply they fire you, but we cannot fire Mazón and Feijóo supports it. With this I do not mean to say that the Government has done everything well, that is not the case either, I do not consider that it has done everything well,” he protested.
Juan José Monrabal, a resident of Catarroja, who lost his 85-year-old mother, lamented in a similar way. He lived, like Fuster’s father, on a ground floor. “I came, but I stayed outside as a protest, because I think that this funeral should not have been held yet with people missing. If I were looking for my mother I wouldn’t want them to do this. I have seen the management as bad from the first moment, an emergency cannot be managed like this and it seems shameful to me that there has been a project to adapt the Poyo ravine since 2004 and that between them it has not been executed,” he denounces. Almost half of the fatalities fit the profile of Sonia and Juan José’s parents: elderly people and residents of ground floor apartments in l’Horta Sud.
The mass has been concelebrated by the parish priests and priests of ground zero, Valencian bishops, the Episcopal Council and the Cabildo de la Seo. The pilgrim image of the Virgin of the Forsaken has been transferred this morning from the basilica and has been placed on the right side of the presbytery, with a purple cloak as a sign of mourning. The event welcomed representatives of other religious denominations, according to Benavent, and part of the service was held in Valencian. The archbishop stressed that society “cannot be indifferent to suffering” and has called to “join forces in favor of those hardest hit by the tragedy” to overcome this situation “together” and face “the future with hope.”
The archbishop received the monarchs along with a representation of the Chapter. The rest of the authorities have entered through the ‘Porta del Palau’ or Puerta de la Almoina (Plaza de la Almoina). The central part of the Seo, with capacity for 700 people, has been set up as a preferential area for families, and on the sides of the central nave, 300 chairs have been added – 150 on each side – until the capacity is complete.
Once the mass was concluded, the kings offered their condolences to the families of the deceased. At the farewell, once again, they were accompanied by the Archbishop and representatives of the Chapter.
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