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His family vineyard and the Weingut Sonnenberg guest house are full of tourists interested in the history of red wine. Unfortunately, last weekend there were desperate refugees from their homes, which were destroyed by the Aras, which spilled from the banks last Wednesday, the river flooded after a few days of rain.
“There is water and electricity. The gas supply was cut off, but we still have more services than many, he said. – Chaos. Real chaos.”
The floods in western Germany claimed the lives of at least 165 people, with the Ahrweiler district, which also includes the town of Bad Neuenahr in Wolff, suffered the most.
So far, around 100 deaths have been confirmed in the area, however many people are still considered missing and the death toll is expected to rise. In addition, thousands have been made homeless and flood losses, including destroyed homes, businesses and infrastructure, are likely to reach billions of euros.
Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler is a historic spa town surrounded by picturesque vineyards and a host of excellent winemakers. Due to the rains that soaked the region last week, the semi-divided city of Aras was heavily flooded.
Roads were flooded with water and mud, cars pulled aside in the town square, and parts of the buildings were simply washed away by the river. A hole was ripped through a house, as if the front wall had been destroyed by a bomb blast.
Mr. Wolff’s cellar was the only one that resisted the verse spree, and that’s just because of the hair. “The water stopped a few inches from the threshold. We were very lucky, ”the woman rejoiced.
As the floodwaters begin to recede, Ms. Wolff and her family contribute countless time to rescuing and tending to the site.
Blessem, an area of the city of Erftstadt, 48 kilometers north of Bad Neuenahr, appears to have suffered an even greater disaster: the spilled Erft flooded a gravel quarry and caused a landslide that demolished houses along its path and buried the road.
Last Friday, the German National Guard and fire brigades from all over the country arrived by boat and arrived for search and rescue operations by teams of divers. They also stabilized the situation at the dam. Still, it was decided on Saturday that the water could come out again, so people rushed to evacuate.
After Thursday’s flood, which seemed to hit many unsuspecting Erftstadt people, no one wanted to take any more risks. When the quarry could not withstand the amount of water, Erft flooded the road connecting Cologne and the southern Aifel region and imprisoned the cars and trucks that were there.
North Rhine-Westphalia Interior Minister Herbert Reul said that before the start of the operation to remove the cars, the estimated depth at the scene of the incident could reach 10 meters.
Given the speed of the floods and the fact that many people are still considered missing, the death toll is projected to rise. “We have to assume that we will find more victims,” said Erftstadt Mayor Carolin Weitzel.
In the center of Erftstadt, residents gathered in a flooded cemetery to help with stones and light candles to honor the dead. A family with young children cried at the entrance to the cemetery. Due to the flooding, staff at the closed supermarket distributed non-perishable food and bottled drinking water to residents of a nearby school. Some 80 evacuees found refuge in Colonia. Others are sent to various cities in the region and do not know if they will return home. And if he returns, he will have a place to live.
“The infrastructure is gone,” Wolff said. – When the bridges collapse, we are isolated on the other side of the city. The number of deaths increases with every hour that passes. When it comes to emotional well-being, we are on the edge. “
Climatologist: climate change has arrived
Aside from the deaths, it will likely take more than a month to repair the damage to infrastructure, including roads, bridges and railways. The effects of the floods have already prompted politicians to speak out again about the cost of climate change. On Friday July 16, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said the severe flooding was caused by changing weather conditions.
When asked if global warming had contributed to the disaster, he replied “definitely” and added: “I don’t want to make hasty statements, but obviously something is going on.”
The floods broke out just weeks after a record heat wave in Canada and the United States, which killed more than 100 people. According to the scientists, that heat would be “practically impossible” without the effects of global warming.
Climatologists warn that the devastation that has ravaged Western Europe shows that climate change has already arrived, leading to an increase in extreme events.
“Climate change has come not only in Germany but also around the world. We already live in a changed climate, which is about 1.1 degrees higher than in the 20th century, “said Justinas Kilpys, a climatologist at Vilnius University (VU), on Info TV.
“Not only are temperature and precipitation averages changing, but also the number of various extreme events. It is difficult to predict when and what phenomenon will occur, but its probability increases with climate change. We see this not only in Germany, but we have spoken of records in the United States and Canada before, as well as huge temperature records are being recorded in Siberia or Lapland, “he said.
According to the climatologist, such phenomena will not be common, but if they now occur once every 100 years, as the climate continues to change, the probability will be at least once every 30 years.
“This means that a person can survive rains and floods of this intensity 3 times. This inevitably indicates that we must adapt to climate change and the climate we are already experiencing around the world, and we must reduce air pollution to avoid the worst case scenario. And this requires not only the efforts of the European Union and Germany, it is a matter for the whole world, “said J. Kilpys.
Merkel visited the devastated region
Chancellor Angela Merkel visited a flood-stricken region of Germany on Sunday to inspect the damage and meet with victims.
In a confrontation with his rescuers, the veteran leader, dressed in hiking boots, walked through the town of Schuld in Rhineland-Palatinate, one of the two worst-hit regions in West Germany.
Merkel, who resigned from politics after the September elections, heard stories from residents of the area where the flooded Aro River washed away houses and left mountains of rubble and garbage on the streets.
She said she was horrified by the “surreal and terrible” devastation she had seen and promised quick help to rebuild everything.
“It is shocking, I can almost say that the German language has no words to describe the devastation that has been caused,” Merkel told reporters.
Pope Francis also expressed “closeness” with the people of the affected regions.
“May the Lord accept the dead and console their loved ones, support the efforts of all who help those who have suffered great damage,” the pontiff said Sunday.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and Belgian Prime Minister Alexander De Croo visited flood-affected areas in Rochefort and Pepterster on Saturday.
“Europe with you,” von der Leyen wrote on Twitter. “We will break up with you and we will be together to rebuild.”
Belgium declared Tuesday a day of national mourning.
The scale of the catastrophe is becoming clearer
The true extent of the catastrophe is only now becoming clear by assessing the damaged buildings, some of which will have to be demolished. Efforts are also underway to restore gas, electricity and telephone services.
In some areas, soldiers used armored vehicles to clear obstructing streets.
Divers have been sent to search for houses and cars underwater in North Rhine-Westphalia.
Officials from North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate said dozens of people were missing in both regions.
However, they emphasized that in the event of failure of communication networks, it is difficult to estimate accurately and the actual number of missing persons may be less.
Roger Lewentz, Interior Minister of Rhineland-Palatinate, said more than 670 people were injured.
“I have lived here my whole life, I was born here and I have never seen anything like it,” said Gregor Degen, who works as a baker in the devastated resort town of Arveiler Nojenar near Schuld.
Merkel called the floods a “tragedy” and promised the federal government’s support to the affected German municipalities.
“My condolences and my heart, to all those who have lost loved ones during this disaster or who are still concerned about the fate of the missing persons,” said the German Chancellor in Washington on Thursday, where she met with the American President Joe Biden.
German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz has promised more than 300 million. emergency aid for people who have lost their homes and businesses, and the cabinet will discuss a much larger rebuilding package on Wednesday.
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