Since the floods that killed at least 217 in eastern Spain, Cristobal Martinez, 87, has only left his house once. He still can’t believe what he sees from the window of his flat in Paiporta, one of the worst-hit municipalities in the Valencia region.

“I’m still thinking all this was a dream. I can’t believe it”, he said.

His 84-year-old wife, Rosario, has remained indoors due to her limited mobility.

The octogenarian couple didn’t think they’d survive another disaster. This is not the first time they have been affected by a flood.

In 1957, Valencia’s city centre was hit by what is known locally as the “Gran Riada”, or Great Valencia flood.

“Back then, I remember that they used to warn that a flood was coming,” Martinez said. “But this time they didn’t say anything.”

In 1957, heavy rains made the Turia river overflow, causing a flood that reached heights of more than three metres in points in the centre of Valencia. The flood killed more than 80 people and seriously damaged many buildings.

A decade after the Great Flood, dictator Francisco Franco ordered a massive construction project to deviate the course of the Turia river away from Valencia’s centre. Today, the old riverbed is a park 9 km (5.6 miles) long that runs through the city.

Collector and local historian Rafael Solaz was eight years old when the Turia River overflowed. For years, he's been collecting hundreds of pictures that documented the disaster.

“This is a repetition in black and white.” he said while looking at old pictures of people shovelling mud on the flooded streets.

Similar scenes have been happening daily in Paiporta since the floods. The Valencia suburb of 27,000 is trying to recover from the disaster with the help of volunteers and the UME, a military unit specialised in emergencies.

Alejandra Rodriguez and her boyfriend Sebastian Adames, both 21, knew about the 1957 flood, but thought "it would never happen again.”

Cleaning up is now their only option. Leaving would be “very difficult” and “not viable” they added, as they helped clear out mud and debris from Alejandra’s father dental clinic.

Marc Valero, 21, a student who wants to become a policeman, has similar feelings about leaving. “This is my town and I want to stay here. And even more so because of this, we are all more united than ever now.”

Scientists say extreme weather is more frequent due to climate change. Meteorologists think the warming of the Mediterranean, which increases water evaporation, plays a key role in making torrential rains more severe. - report from Reuters