Germany's floods: Help is on the way

About 200 people have been reported dead and scores more are missing after torrential rain and floods swept across Western Europe, with Germany bearing the brunt of one of its biggest natural disasters in recent decades. Rescue operations continue in the country's hardest-hit cities and towns. Victims are now beginning to deal with the debris from damage to buildings and houses.

The situation in some districts in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) is still critical, others are assessing damage as floodwaters recede. Leaking gas pipes and structural damage to buildings across the state have turned some sites into death traps and the debris has to be removed quickly to avoid further safety threats.

With the death toll has reached near 200, thousands of volunteers, firefighters and some 900 army personnel have joined the clean-up and salvage operations. There are fears that more victims could be found as waters recede and begin to reveal the true toll the storm took on everything in its path.

Some people were trapped in buildings likely to collapse at any second for hours. In towns such as Schuld and Heimerzheim floodwaters destroyed roads and railroad tracks, cutting off residents from the outside world. In extreme cases, police, fire and rescue, and armed forces units had to airlift residents from rooftops by helicopter.

While rescue workers are exhausted from grueling and deadly round-the-clock work, police have warned against "flood tourism" — telling outsiders to stay away. "They make affected residents feel like they are in a zoo," as Lars Brummer of the Koblenz Police Department told regional public broadcaster SWR. "They can also hinder rescue workers."

Hundreds of families have lost everything and become displaced. The cities of Cologne and Bonn in North Rhine-Westphalia have set up emergency accommodations for evacuees on Friday. aid organizations have begun collecting donations and recruiting volunteers for what will be massive repair operations.

Local media have reported catastrophic damage to infrastructure, public property and private businesses. Rhineland-Palatinate Finance Minister Doris Ahnen promised tax waivers to flood victims. At a time when the coronavirus pandemic continues to devastate the livelihood of many families in Germany, some victims might need much more than that to get back on their feet again.