This is the dramatic moment an army helicopter recovered vehicles swept away by devastating floods in Spain.

Footage captures the V Helicopter Transport Battalion (BHELTRAV) of the Army's Air Mobile Forces retrieving cars carried off by heavy rainfall that lashed Valencia and neighbouring Portugal, particularly in the Albufeira and Moncarapacho area.

Authorities are continuing cleanup operations to recover vehicles from the floodwaters.

On November 24, rescue teams were reported to have removed cars from submerged underground parking facilities.

Torrential rains battered Valencia, Spain, in late October. The ensuing floods resulted in more than 200 deaths, with several still missing, after the intense downpours overwhelmed riverbanks, damaged infrastructure, and forced thousands to evacuate.

The freak weather was said to be caused by a phenomenon locally referred to as 'Depresion Aislada en Niveles Altos' or DANA - an air mass that is colder than its surroundings at higher levels. The temperature difference creates an unstable atmosphere that triggers heavy rainfall in a very short period.