CHIVA
\nSpain\u2019s royals will make a highly anticipated return to the epicenter of catastrophic floods on Tuesday after a chaotic trip where survivors hurled mud and insults at them, local media said.
\nThe European country is reeling from the October 29 disaster that has killed 227 people and sparked widespread fury at the governing class for their perceived mishandling of the crisis.
\nThat outrage boiled over in the ground-zero town of Paiporta in the eastern Valencia region when King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia visited on November 3, in extraordinary scenes that stunned the world.
\nFurious residents chanting \u201cmurderers\u201d pelted them with mud and projectiles as they struggled to wade through the crowds, while Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez was hastily evacuated.
\nThe monarchs have since pledged to return to the Valencia region after another trip to the devastated town of Chiva was canceled that day.
\nThe royal palace told AFP it would give details later Tuesday for the visit.
\nFelipe and Letizia are returning to keep their promise and console survivors in Chiva where the floods ripped away lives and homes, said Vicente Garrido, professor of constitutional law at the University of Valencia.
\nResidents will be more welcoming on this occasion because \u201cminds are calmer\u201d despite \u201cthe enormous pain,\u201d and royal visits are \u201can honor\u201d for any town, he told AFP.
\nPublic anger
\nWhereas Sanchez and the Valencia region\u2019s leader Carlos Mazon left early last time, the mud-spattered royal couple braved the popular anger to speak with victims.
\nThat gesture was \u201cviewed very positively by everyone\u201d and will afford them \u201ca reception befitting who they are\u201d this week, said Garrido.
\nTheir willingness to travel and risk personal harm earlier this month \u201cstrengthens the image\u201d of the monarchy, Garrido said.
\nPopular ire has instead targeted elected politicians, particularly Mazon because the regions manage the response to natural disasters in Spain\u2019s decentralized state.
\nLocal authorities in many cases warned residents of the impending catastrophe too late and stricken towns depended on volunteers for essential supplies for days in the absence of the state.
\nThe conservative Mazon admitted \u201cmistakes\u201d and apologized in the regional parliament on Friday but refused to resign and vowed to lead Valencia\u2019s gigantic reconstruction effort.
\nSanchez is due to appear in parliament this month to explain the left-wing central government\u2019s handling of the floods.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
CHIVA Spain\u2019s royals will make a highly anticipated return to the epicenter of catastrophic floods on Tuesday after a chaotic trip where survivors hurled mud and insults at them, local media said. The European country is reeling from the October 29 disaster that has killed 227 people and sparked widespread fury at the governing class […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":444570,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-444560","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n