Floodwaters recede, but deaths continue to rise
Alities in western ope from heavy n and flashfloods up to 180, feared eep climbing, as cuers dig deeper
The death toll from the sive flooding across westeurope climbed above 180 unday after rescue workers deeper into debris left by ding waters. lice put the toll from the -hit Ahrweiler area of ern Germany’s Rhinelandtinate state at more than nd said they feared the ber may still rise.
neighbouring North e-westphalia, which is many’s most populous e, 45 people were coned dead, including four ighters. And Belgium has irmed 27 casualties.
man chancellor, sident make visits
man Chancellor Angela kel was due to visit Schuld, lage near Ahrweiler that devastated by the flooding, r on Sunday. Her visit es after Germany’s Presifrank-walter Steinmeier t to the area on Saturday made clear that it will need -term support. nance minister Olaf Scholz he will propose a package mediate aid at a cabinet ting on Wednesday, telling ild am Sonntag newspaper that more than 300 million euros ($354 million) will be needed. He also said that officials must start setting up a rebuilding programme which, from experience with previous flooding, will be in the billions of euros.
Although rain has stopped in the worst-affected areas of Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands, storms and downpours have persisted in other parts of western and central Europe. There was flooding on Saturday night in the German-czech border area, across the country from where last week’s floods hit, and in Germany’s southeastern corner and over the border in Austria.
Some 65 people were evacuated in Germany’s Berchtesgaden area after the Ache River swelled. At least one person was killed. A flashflood swept through the nearby Austrian town of Hallein late on Saturday, but there were no reports of casualties.
Heavy rain and storms caused serious damage in several parts of Austria as well, although no fatalities have been reported as of now
Climate scientists say the link between extreme weather and global warming is unmistakable and the urgency to do something about the climate crisis undeniable.
Scientists can’t yet say for sure whether climate change caused the flooding, but they insist that it certainly exacerbates the extreme weather that has been on show around the world.
German candidate sorry for being seen laughing
The frontrunner to succeed Merkel in Germany’s September election has apologised for news that he was seen laughing in the background as the country’s president delivered a statement on the devastating floods in western Germany.
Armin Laschet, the candidate of Merkel’s centre-right Union bloc to be Germany’s next leader, is also the governor of North Rhine-westphalia state - one of two badly hit by last week’s floods.
Dramatic rescue effort
On Saturday, he visited the town of Erfstadt, which was the scene of a dramatic rescue effort after the ground gave way, with President Frank-walter Steinmeier.
While Steinmeier gave a statement to reporters after the visit, Laschet and a group of others stood in the background. Photos showed him turning to someone else and laughing.
Lars Klingbeil, the general secretary of the centre-left Social Democrats, told Sunday’s Bild am Sonntag newspaper that Laschet’s behaviour was “lacking in decency and appalling”. “They say that people’s character shows in times of crisis,” he added.
Laschet took to Twitter on Saturday evening to explain himself and thank Steinmeier for his visit.
“The fate of those affected, which we heard about in many conversations, is important to us,” he wrote. “So I regret all the more the impression that arose from a conversational situation. That was inappropriate and I am sorry.”
The Union bloc currently leads polls ahead of the environmentalist Greens, with the Social Democrats in third place. The election is on September 26.