Overview
- Testifying to a Senate inquiry, Carlos Gajero said he traveled to Madrid on Oct. 29 despite a red alert, missed the morning planning meeting and Cecopi link-up, and learned of fatalities at about 5 a.m. the next day.
- He said the Cecopi should probably have convened earlier than 5 p.m. on Oct. 29 and described overall inter‑institutional coordination as “mejorable.”
- He reported that the National Police needed three to four days to reach maximum strength, growing from roughly 4,290 early personnel to more than 6,000 agents with added vehicles and air assets.
- He defended the response as maintaining continuous command under the provincial and regional operations chiefs until his mid‑morning return to Valencia on Oct. 30, when he visited Torrent and joined Cecopi meetings.
- He acknowledged the force lacks a specific flood protocol and training for climate emergencies, and he faced sharp criticism from PP senator Luis Santamaría, who called his opening video propagandistic.