Updated 2 hours ago
The death toll from devastating floods in Europe has risen to at least 93, mostly in western Germany, where emergency responders have been searching for hundreds of missing people.
«I am afraid we will only see the full extent of the catastrophe in the coming days,» Chancellor Angela Merkel said from Washington last night, where she met US President Joe Biden.
Arrested unaware and leaving devastation and desperation in their wake, the masses of water were dubbed the «flood of death» by Germany’s best-selling daily Bild.
Authorities in the Rhineland-Palatinate state said 50 people have died in the western state, bringing the country’s death toll to at least 81.
Neighboring Belgium counted at least 12 dead, and more than 21,000 people were without electricity in the Wallonia region.
Luxembourg and the Netherlands were also hit hard by the torrential rains, with thousands being evacuated in the city of Maastricht.
But the death toll in Germany was by far the highest, and is likely to rise with large numbers of people still missing in North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate, the worst affected states.
In the devastated Ahrweiler region of the Rhineland-Palatinate, about 1,300 people are missing, although local authorities have told Bild that the large number is likely due to damaged telephone networks.
«We think there are still 40, 50 or 60 people missing, and when you don’t hear about people for a long time… you have to fear the worst,» Regional Interior Minister Roger Lewentz told SWR Radio.
«It is likely that the number of casualties will continue to rise in the coming days,» he added.
‘Disaster’
Moreover, rain is expected to continue in parts of the west, as the water levels in the Rhine and its tributaries are rising dangerously.
About 1,000 soldiers have been deployed to assist in rescue and rubble removal operations in the affected towns and villages.
Streets, underwater homes, overturned cars and killed trees were seen everywhere the flood waters passed, while some areas were cut off from the outside world.
In Ahrweiler several houses completely collapsed, leaving the impression that the city was hit by a tsunami.
At least 20 people have been confirmed dead in Euskirchen, one of the worst-hit towns in the north.
Its usual, sprawling center has been reduced to a pile of rubble, with the facades of houses torn apart by rushing floods.
The rubble piled up in a village in Ahrweiler district the day after the storm as the water level rose
Source: DPA / PA Images
Adding to the town’s problems, the nearby dam is still at risk of being undone.
«My sympathy and heart goes out to all those who have lost loved ones in this disaster, or who are still concerned about the fate of the people who are still missing,» Merkel told reporters in Washington.
She said her government would not leave those affected «alone with their suffering,» adding that it was «doing everything it can to help them in their plight.»
Looking out over her flooded garden and garage from her balcony, retiree Annemarie Muller, 65, said her Maine town wasn’t quite ready for destruction.
«Where did all this rain come from? It’s crazy,» she told AFP, recalling the flood waters that had collapsed on her street during the night.
«It made such a loud noise and given how fast it went down we thought it would break the door.»
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Five people are still missing in Belgium and the army has been sent to four of the country’s 10 provinces to assist with rescue and evacuation operations.
With homes submerged in water since Wednesday, people from a spa resort have pitched in tents.
Elio de Rupo, the regional president of Wallonia, said the swollen Meuse «would look very dangerous for Liege,» a neighboring city of 200,000 people.
Climate change?
Storms have brought climate change back to the heart of Germany’s election campaign ahead of parliamentary elections on September 26 marking the end of Merkel’s 16 years in power.
Interior Minister Horst Seehofer said Germany «should prepare much better» in the future, adding that «this extreme weather is a consequence of climate change».
Since a warmer atmosphere contains more water, climate change increases the risk and severity of flooding from heavy rain.
In urban areas with poor drainage and buildings located in flood areas, the damage can be severe.
Political candidates rushed to start a bidding war on the climate after the floods.
Prime Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia Armin Laschet, the conservative running to succeed Merkel, has called for an «acceleration» of global efforts to combat climate change, stressing the link between global warming and extreme weather.
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