MADRID — As families along Spain’s Mediterranean coast took to the country’s airwaves to plea for help finding lost loved ones in the aftermath of last week’s devastating floods, the government Monday deployed hundreds more troops to help with the search for victims, according to emergency authorities.

Thousands of soldiers and police officers deployed to the region to help with rescue and recovery efforts were stymied by up to a foot more of rain in some places Monday. Spain’s meteorological agency had recorded about 6 inches of rain by 11 a.m. in Barcelona and warned that the city could get another 5 inches later in the day.

The agency also predicted heavy rains in the coastal provinces of Castellón, Tarragona and Barcelona.

Spain’s Interior Ministry said Monday that the death toll had risen to 215 people from the floods spurred by downpours that began last week. The disaster has sparked an angry debate in Spain over accountability, with some people accusing government officials of waiting too long to send warnings.

Dozens of flights were canceled and 18 were diverted from the international airport in Barcelona, according to the airport operator. News agencies shared videos of flooding in the terminals.

Rain was also falling in Valencia, the region hit hardest by last week’s flash floods. That could complicate search-and-rescue efforts still underway there Monday.

Several main roads remained cut off in the region, and some people were without power or drinkable water.

As a clearer picture of the scale of the catastrophe has emerged, Spaniards have questioned why so many people were seemingly unprepared for the destruction or the violence of the storms.

Spain’s meteorological agency started issuing weather warnings days before the storm intensified and issued a flurry of them last Tuesday morning, when rains were heaviest.

But the regional government in Valencia, which controls the formal alert system, did not send out a text message with an alert until after 8 p.m. that day, when the floodwaters were already rising.

That has led to anger and frustration with authorities — sentiments that spilled over Sunday in Valencia, when a delegation of leaders came to visit the town of Paiporta, where at least 60 people died.

Protesters screamed insults and flung mud at King Felipe VI, Queen Letizia, Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and Carlos Mazón, the leader of the Valencia region.

Some people have accused Mazón and other regional officials of not acting quickly enough, questioning why he spent Tuesday morning chairing meetings and speaking with unions instead of aggressively preparing for the floods.

Others — including Mazón — have blamed Sánchez and the national government for not responding more quickly to the emergency.