Heavy rain and flooding wreak havoc across West Germany: NPR

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An aerial view showed Wednesday, downtown Hagen, western Germany, after torrential rains in parts of the country caused widespread flooding. Ina Fassbender / AFP via Getty Images Hide caption

Toggle caption Ina Fassbender/AFP via Getty Images

An aerial view showed Wednesday, downtown Hagen, western Germany, after torrential rains in parts of the country caused widespread flooding.

Ina Fassbender / AFP via Getty Images

More than 30 people were killed and dozens are still missing in western Germany after torrential rain and flooding overnight Wednesday.

The grape-growing region and the mountainous Eifel region in the Rhineland-Palatinate state were one of the hardest hit. Six houses collapsed in the village of Shold and authorities say 25 other buildings in the village are at risk of collapsing.

In response to offers of help from the public, the Koblenz police have asked people to stay away from the Ahrweiler district in Eifel, but to upload any footage of the flooding to social media to help them locate the missing. Authorities in Koblenz tweeted Thursday morning that 18 people had died in the area.

Many residents are waiting to be evacuated from their rooftops, but roads to some villages in the area are no longer available due to floods and landslides. Regional authorities declared a state of emergency and the army deployed.

Climate change is now increasing the risk of monsoon rains turning into a disaster. In hotter Europe, scientists expect torrential rains to become more intense and floods to increase more frequently

The Rhineland-Palatinate government is holding an emergency meeting Thursday to address the risks of the current situation and the process required to remove the damage.

In the neighboring state of North Rhine-Westphalia, an 82-year-old man died in a flooded cellar in the city of Wuppertal. Regional authorities said two firefighters died overnight during rescue operations.

The floods also affected neighboring European countries including Belgium, where Prime Minister Alexandre de Croo said the country was facing “unprecedented rain”.

The governor of North Rhine-Westphalia, Armin Laschet, who succeeds Chancellor Angela Merkel in the September elections, is due to arrive in Hagen later Thursday. The city experienced its worst flooding in 25 years, and authorities are warning residents who live near the river to leave their properties.

Merkel, who is in Washington, DC, while meeting President Biden, issued a statement through a government spokesperson on Twitter.

“My condolences to the relatives of the dead and missing. I thank the many tireless helpers and emergency services from the bottom of my heart,” Merkel said.

Chancellor #Merkel: “I am shocked by the disaster that so many people are enduring in the flood areas. My condolences to the families of the dead and missing. I thank the many tireless helpers and emergency services from the bottom of my heart.”

— Steffen Seibert (@RegSsprecher) Jul 15, 2021

Transport infrastructure was also badly damaged by the rains. Most rail services running through central and western Germany have been suspended, resulting in congestion on the country’s highways.

Parts of southern and eastern Germany were also hit by floods, as were neighboring countries Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands.

Dutch troops help with precautionary evacuation efforts in the southern province of Limburg, where rivers are expected to burst their banks. After more than two months of rain in just 24 hours, authorities are preparing for more rain Thursday, but dry weather is expected by the end of the week.

The severe flooding also sparked a dialogue about the impact of climate change with German Federal Environment Minister Svenja Schulz in a tweet, “The events show the force the consequences of climate change can affect all of us and how important it is to better prepare for such extreme weather events in the future.”

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