Sisters to Travel to Spain Following Parents’ Flood Fatalities

Two sisters are preparing for a difficult journey to Spain to initiate the process of returning their parents’ remains, following their deaths in recent flooding. Don Turner, aged 78, and his 74-year-old wife, Terri, were discovered deceased inside their vehicle after flash floods impacted the Valencia region last week, resulting in the deaths of a minimum of 217 individuals. The couple’s daughters, Ruth O’Loughlin and Renee Turner, who reside in Burntwood, Staffordshire, received notification on Saturday that their parents’ bodies had been located a short distance from their residence near Pedralba. Both sisters are scheduled to depart for Valencia from Stansted Airport on Saturday. “It’s not like a trip that we used to make to see mum and dad to have dinner and watch films with them,” she said. “We’re going over there because they’re not with us anymore and it’s going to be very heartbreaking for us.” Ms Turner added: “It’s dread I think, that’s the only way I can put it.” Ms O’Loughlin indicated that upon their arrival in Spain, they plan to meet with the British Consulate and then proceed to the police station to formally identify their father. She also mentioned that their mother had already been identified via her fingerprints. The two individuals are scheduled to remain there for an initial period of one week, residing at their parents’ home during this time. “We know mum and dad would have wanted to come home… the difficult thing will be looking through all their things, their bank details, pensions, everything like that – stuff we don’t want to do,” she said. Ms O’Loughlin also expressed their desire to ascertain the precise circumstances of their parents’ deaths. “Your mind conjures up all sorts of nightmarish scenarios. In my mind they probably drowned but we haven’t had that confirmed. It’s just something we don’t want to think about” she added. “We need to know so we’re not conjuring up all these scenarios and we just pray to God that they didn’t suffer because it would break our hearts more than they’re already broken.” They reported that the process has been facilitated by the “amazing” assistance received from the British Consulate, alongside support from individuals in Spain, notably a family who has consented to care for their parents’ dogs. Ms Turner said: “It’s absolutely overwhelming. It’s amazing how people rally together when things happen.“People I don’t even really know have messaged me and sent their condolences. We’ve been honoured in that respect and so have mum and dad.” Their efforts are also motivated by a commitment to collect funds for the Naturaleza y Animales dog rescue charity, an organization where their parents volunteered. Ms O’Loughlin mentioned their intention to visit the charity during their time in Spain. “That’s the one positive that’s coming out of this and it keeps us going because we know mum and dad would be absolutely over the moon that there was money for the dog rescue,” she said. “If we can help, that’s what we want to do in honour of mum and dad.”