TWENTY-ONE people are dead and up to 70 are missing when homes collapsed during intense flooding in Germany.
The houses came down in Rhineland-Palatinate in the west of the country last night and the dead included two firefighters who drowned, according to German media outlet Bild.
One firefighter drowned while a second collapsed following a rescue operation in North Rhine Westphlia, DPA news agency reports.
Floods have also hit Liege province in eastern Belgium.
Belgium news outlet VRT NWS quoted the mayor of Pepinster, a small town of around 10,000 people in the Liege province, who said dozens of houses collapsed along the Vesdre River that flows through the area.
Read our Germany floods live blog for the very latest updates…
- John Hall
ON A KNIFE EDGE
The situation in the rural area of Eifelkreis Bitburg-Prum has been described as "extremely dangerous".
A family of five is reportedly stranded in their home while being surrounded by rising water – with rescue attempts proving unsuccessful.
Homes within a 50-metre radius of the Ahr River have been urgently evacuated.
- John Hall
UTTER CARNAGE
In Solingen and in the Unna district, two men were found dead in their flooded cellars.
In Leverkusen, 468 people had to be evacuated from a hospital after floods cut off power, Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung says.
- John Hall
TRAPPED
Flooding has caused major damage to properties and forced authorities to close off large chunks of motorway leading in and around the inundated areas.
A police spokesman in Koblenz, Rhineland-Palatinate, said that up to 70 people are missing, Bild reports.
Some 50 people trapped on their roofs have been rescued, a local police official said.
- John Hall
HORROR SCENES
In Germany, at least eight are dead and as many as 25 more homes in the Schuld bei Adenau district are reportedly in danger of suddenly collapsing, while six have already crumbled, local police said Thursday morning.
In neighbouring North Rhine Westphalia, at least 13 people are confirmed dead with bodies found scattered in several places.
Source: Read Full Article