Alex Trelinski
THE story of baby Aurora’s survival when the floods struck Paiporta on October 29 has been held up as a great example of community cooperation during the Valencia DANA tragedy.
Her survival story was down to the joint efforts of her mother and grandmother; a Paiporta resident; and the Guardia Civil- plus the help of a suitcase!
Flor was traveling by car with her daughter(barely a month old) and her 68-year-old mother after a shopping trip to Alfafar when a torrent of water surprised them in the Paiporta industrial estate.
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“I panicked, I didn’t react in time and the car started to fill with water,” said Flor.
As the situation got worse, Flor’s mother who was travelling in the back seat handed Aurora over to her via the boot to make sure she did not come into contact with the water.
With the baby in their arms, both women walked fighting against the current and sticking to building walls and clinging to a fence so as not to be dragged away.
Then they were helped by Paiporta resident, Azahara, who had abandoned her car.
The 31-year-old said: “A wave swept me away but I managed to roll down the window and got out as best I could.”
She heard the cries of help for help from the two women and climbed a fence to help them.
“I saw baby Aurora, I took her inside a nearby retail warehousey building,” she said.
Once indoors, the three women, the baby and two men looked for ways to protect themselves from the water, which rose at an alarming rate.
They found a suitcase which they placed Aurora in and if needed- something that could float her safety.
“We covered her with jackets and a cloth, the important thing was to keep her safe,” said Azahara.
Scared of being trapped, they broke a fence to try to force an escape route and looked for objects such as doors and wheels they could use to help float in case the water reached the second floor where they were sheltering.
“It was a mousetrap, if the level continued to rise we would drown,” confessed Azahara.
After an ordeal lasting for hours, the group heard shouting from Guardia Civil officers.
Flor said: “It was an indescribable feeling for relief.”
They were taken to a home belonging to a relative of Azahara close to the industrial estate.
A Guardia officer said: “I never let go of the baby until she was completely safe.” adds one of the civil guards.
Azahara said she will never forget a kiss on the forehead that one of the officers gave to baby Aurora after the rescue.
“It was a moment of tenderness in the midst of so much horror, that gesture will never leave my head,” she recalled.
Amazingly days later, Azahara returned to the car part warehouse to apologise for the damage caused during her search for safety and shelter.
The owners told her that the most important thing was that their premises saved lives.
