BarcelonaCarlos Romero (Torrent, 2001) will never forget October 29, 2024. The Espanyol player turned 23 on the same day that DANA flooded the streets of several municipalities in the Valencian Community. A birthday with a bitter aftertaste seeing that the water flooded and caused serious damage to the towns where both he and his partner were born. The storm did not cause any personal loss to them, but it did leave some of their relatives and acquaintances incommunicado for a few hours.
Three weeks later, he tells the ARA how he has experienced a tragedy from a distance that, he warns, will still require months of work. “I was making a video call with my parents, who were congratulating me on my birthday, when an alert popped up on their mobile phone. It wasn’t raining at the time, but shortly after that the connection was cut,” says the footballer. Suddenly, celebrating a birthday turned into an agonizing wait. “It was shocking, because the electricity stopped working in many towns, and they also didn’t have internet data on their mobile phones. I was worried about the parents, but soon after we were notified by SMS that they were fine”, he continues. It wasn’t until hours later, however, that they were able to confirm that all the people around them, residents of affected municipalities, were safe and sound. “In the case of a friend, we didn’t hear anything until the next day. Luckily, all the acquaintances were able to save their lives, they are fine and they only had to regret some material damage”, says Romero.
In the days following the heavy rains, the defender had to settle for following everything that was happening in the Valencian Community from television and social networks. “It was shocking and shocking to see the situations our towns were living in, because we have all our family and friends there. It was also hard to see some of the fields where he had played as a child destroyed,” he recalls. It wasn’t until last weekend, taking advantage of the national team break, when Romero and his partner were able to travel to Valencia. “It was incredible, it looked like a war had happened. In Torrent, an area close to the ravine was particularly affected. In the woman’s village they continued to live with a mountain of cars, rubbish and mud. There is no good atmosphere”, he laments.
Although the rain has long passed, the towns in the area are still suffering its consequences. “The family is now better, but they have had a bad time. It’s hard that they can’t go anywhere because the roads are closed, and it’s even more difficult to be forced to live with so much crap on the streets”, says Romero, who asks for help: “There’s a lack of people who know how to remove cars and rubbish. The politicians have not been able to manage it and are not able to do it, and there is still a lot of work to be done. Apart from cleaning up all the mud, we will have to help the companies so that they don’t lose jobs”, he claims. Some acquaintances, moreover, still do not know if they will be able to keep their jobs.
Football, in the background
During these weeks, football has taken a back seat. And that, just four days after DANA’s first strong episode, Romero was one of the players who participated in the derby on November 3 in Montjuïc. The one from Torrent, of course, regretted right after the game that that day ended up being contested. “My family and friends are raising mud and I would like to be with them there. I think that’s what I should do right now, it hurts me to be here playing and not being able to help those who really deserve it.”
Hours before the match, the player had asked Espanyol to do something to help those affected by DANA. At the time, however, the organization was already working with the Curva RCDE to start a collection of material and food. The player was one of the many people who approached the RCDE Stadium to contribute their grain of sand. The initiative managed to fill four trailers. “Due to the competition, I couldn’t do more than go there to bring some things. I was surprised by everything that was contributed. Espanyol is a big club and acted as a reliable collection point”, he celebrates.
This Saturday (6.30 p.m., M. LaLiga TV), in Montilivi, Romero will try to help get out of the mud an Espanyol that, in the absence of the postponed match against Valencia, is in relegation positions. “If we don’t see ourselves capable of saving ourselves, no one will. It will be a difficult year for most teams in the League, many of us are looking for salvation, but we will work to get out of there”, he claims. In the white-and-blue dressing room, they are aware of the importance of staying in Primera the year after promotion: “Permanence would give the entity a plus to stabilize itself, so everything happens to save itself this year We hope and wish it to be so. We are in a delicate situation in terms of points, but we are showing our face in all the games”, he says. The side on loan from Villarreal does not want to think further: “The future? Right now I’m just focused on permanence. I don’t know what will happen, my agents and the two clubs are talking about it. I was surprised by Barcelona, it is very similar to Valencia and I also have a beach to disconnect. I am very comfortable with my teammates and the staff, and Espanyol is a very familiar club.”
