Efforts to find more victims and clean up the mess left behind by the floods across western Germany, eastern Belgium and the Netherlands continued on Monday as floodwaters receded. But, Armin Schuster told ZDF television, “half an hour before, it is often not possible to say what place will be hit with what quantity” of water. He said that his agency had sent 150 warning notices out via apps and media. Officials in the worst-affected German state, Rhineland-Palatinate, said they were well-prepared for flooding and municipalities had been alerted and acted. … You can have the very best preparations and warning situations (but) if warning equipment is destroyed and carried away with buildings, then that is a very difficult situation.”

Source: Irish Independent July 19, 2021 07:41 UTC