Friday 19 / April / 2024
Berlin: At least 42 people have died in parts of western Germany amid heavy rains and flooding, local police said on Thursday. Most of the deaths have been reported in the states of North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate.
Koblenz police also said that at least 18 people in the Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler area in Rhineland-Palatinate had died in the floods.
"Unfortunately, we have to confirm that the number of fatalities in connection with the flood disaster in the Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler area has now risen to a total of 18. Our deepest condolences go out to all concerned," the department tweeted.bout 30 people are missing in western Germany after a flood last night caused by continuous rainfall, local media reported Thursday.
A total of six houses collapsed in the town of Schuld in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate during the past night, according to regional public broadcasting corporation SWR. Another 25 houses in the area are in an unstable condition and at risk of collapse, with the extent of the damage and the exact number of missing yet unknown, the report quoted police as saying.
In some areas of the state, local people were besieged by floodwaters and awaiting air rescue, it said, adding that the German military (Bundeswehr) was also partially involved in the rescue.
A low-pressure system with its centre over Central Europe continues to make the weather in Rhineland-Palatinate and the state of Saarland in western Germany changeable, but no longer with widespread rainfall, according to the latest update by German weather service DWD on Thursday morning.
