- After the worst floods hit the area, citizens of Western Europe were summoned to help the villagers clean up.
- An incident of this magnitude resulted in the deaths of more than 150 Europeans and dozens more missing.
- Rescuers said that as the clean-up work progresses, more bodies may be found in the drenched cellar.
After the worst flooding in Western Europe in decades caused more than 150 deaths and dozens of missing people, troops and firefighters were called on Saturday to help villagers clean up the mammoths.
Western Germany suffered the most brutal effects of the floods. The floods also hit Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Streets and houses were flooded with muddy water, and entire communities were isolated.
The death toll in Germany is 133. Rescuers said that as the clean-up work is carried out in earnest, more bodies may be found in the drenched cellar.
In Germany’s worst-hit states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate, residents who fled the flood are gradually returning to their homes and desolate scenes.
Watch | Storm ravaged Europe, at least 45 people died in Germany
“Within a few minutes, there was a wave in the house,” baker Cornelia Schloesser said of the torrent that arrived in Schulder on Wednesday night and took her for a hundred years. Historic family business.
“These 48 hours have been a nightmare. We are going around here, but there is nothing we can do,” she said, examining the twisted metal, broken glass and wood piled up in her former storefront.
arduous task
In the affected areas, firefighters, local officials and soldiers, and some people driving tanks have begun to clear the piles of debris that blocked the streets.
“The task is arduous,” admitted the mayor of Solingen, a city in the south of the Ruhr region.
The true scale of the disaster is only now becoming clear. Damaged buildings are being assessed, some of which will have to be demolished, and efforts are being made to restore natural gas, electricity and telephone services.
The interruption of the communication network complicates the assessment of the number of people who are still missing.
“We have to assume that we will find more victims,” said Carolin Weitzel, the mayor of Erftstadt in North Rhine-Westphalia, which experienced terrible landslides caused by flooding.
Read | Floods in Europe killed more than 100 people
Rhineland-Palatinate Interior Minister Roger Levenz told local media that as many as 60 people are believed to be missing.
The government said it is working to establish a special aid fund, and the losses are expected to reach billions of dollars.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel (Angela Merkel) returned from a trip to Washington overshadowed by the disaster on Friday, vowing to provide “government’s short-term and long-term support” to the disaster-stricken municipalities.
She has not yet traveled to the scene from the capital, Berlin, but her spokesperson said on Friday that she is in close contact with regional leaders to discuss “coming to the scene of the disaster.”
Pay attention to climate change
Before the polls held on September 26 that marked the end of Merkel’s 16 years in power, the devastating flood had brought climate change back to the center of the German election campaign, killing at least 133 people.
German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer stated that Germany “must be better prepared” in the future, adding that “this extreme weather is the result of climate change”.
Armin Laschet of Merkel’s Christian Democratic League was the front runner to succeed her after the election. He talked about his North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate states. Historic disaster”.
The Green Party candidate Annalena Baerbock interrupted her summer vacation to the disaster-stricken areas, while the standard-bearer of the Social Democratic Party and Finance Minister Olaf Scholz promised to provide “non-bureaucratic assistance.” .
The news magazine Der Spiegel stated that the link between global warming and extreme weather events (such as heavy rains in the last few days that led to flooding) will be the focus of the candidate’s response to climate change.
Noting that the frequency of natural disasters is expected to increase due to climate emergencies, it said:
In the next few days, someone will be sure that this is not a campaign issue, but of course it is. People want to know how politicians will guide them to accomplish such things.
In neighboring Belgium, the death toll jumped to 20, and more than 21,000 people lost power in one area.
Luxembourg and the Netherlands were also hit by heavy rains, flooding many areas and forcing the evacuation of thousands of people from Maastricht.
Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel called the situation in many parts of the country “serious” and said the economic losses were “huge”.
He pledged to provide an initial aid package of US$59 million to citizens who suffered losses in the flood.
Did you know you can comment on this article? Subscribe to news 24 And add your voice to the conversation.
