More than 30 dead, dozens missing in heavy Europe floods

A resident near damaged cars and houses after heavy rain and floods in Hagen, western Germany on Thursday. Pic/AFP

More than 30 people have died and dozens of people were missing Thursday in Germany and Belgium after heavy flooding turned streams and streets into raging torrents, sweeping away cars and causing buildings to collapse.

Storms across parts of western Europe in recent days caused rivers and reservoirs to burst their banks, resulting in several flash floods overnight as rain-soaked soil failed to absorb any more water.

Authorities in the western German region of Euskirchen said eight deaths had been reported there in connection with the floods. Rescue operations were hampered as phone and internet connections were down in parts of the county.

Officials said 18 people had died in Ahrweiler county. Up to 70 people were reported missing after several houses collapsed overnight in the village of Schuld in the Eifel, a volcanic region southwest of Cologne.

Dozens were trapped on the roofs of their houses. Authorities used inflatable boats and helicopters, and the German army deployed 200 soldiers to assist in the rescue operation. "There are people dead, there are people missing, there are many who are still in danger," governor of Rhineland-Palatinate state, Malu Dreyer, told regional parliament. "We have never seen such a disaster. It's really devastating."

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said she was distraught. "My sympathy goes to the relatives and of the dead and missing," she said in Washington.

In Belgium, the Vesdre river broke its banks and sent water churning through the streets of Pepinster, close to Liege, its destructive power bringing down some buildings. "Several homes have collapsed," mayor Philippe Godin told RTBF network. It was unclear whether all inhabitants had been able to escape unhurt.

5 dead, 3 missing in floods in Turkey

At least five people have been killed and three people are missing after heavy rains hit Turkey's northeastern Black Sea coast, triggering floods and landslides, officials and reports said Thursday. The heavy downpour struck the tea-growing province of Rize late on Wednesday, sweeping away cars and causing a number of houses to collapse.

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