Merkel visits flood areas: “We stand by your side – federal and state”

Chancellor Merkel got an idea of ​​the flood disaster in the Eifel. She spoke of “ghostly images”. Together with Prime Minister Dreyer, she promised quick help and called for more climate protection.

Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) has announced that she will provide rapid relief during her visit to the areas in Rhineland-Palatinate that have been hard hit by the floods. “We stand by your side – federal and state”, she said in Adenau in the Rhineland-Palatinate district of Ahrweiler. She came to get a real picture of the surreal, “ghostly images” on site, said Merkel.

You can see “with what force nature can act”. Merkel promised more efforts to protect the climate. “We will oppose this force of nature – in the short term, but also in the medium and long term.” A policy is required “that takes nature and the climate into consideration more than we have done in recent years”.

“Bringing it in order step by step”

The federal government and the state would now act together, “to bring the world in order step by step in this beautiful area,” said Merkel. On Wednesday the cabinet in Berlin will adopt a program for quick aid. Federal Finance Minister Olaf Scholz (SPD) had already named the sum of 300 million euros for this.

The Chancellor assured that in addition to providing quick aid, the federal government would provide long-term support. She will come back at the end of August – “so that we can make it clear that we have to have a long breath”.

“Won’t rest until people are found”

The Chancellor was accompanied by the Rhineland-Palatinate Prime Minister Malu Dreyer (SPD). Like Merkel before, she also expressly thanked the emergency services and local politicians on site.

They assume a “long, long-term effort” until the reconstruction in the affected areas is mastered. “It will be a long time before people can say again: I recognize my home country again,” said Dreyer. The search for those who are still missing now has priority. “We will not rest until the people who are missing are found,” she promised.

At least 157 fatalities

Many houses were destroyed in the worst flood disaster in Germany for decades. Bridges, roads and railways are in ruins. The search for missing persons continues in many areas hit hard by the flood. The death toll is expected to continue to rise.

According to the police, at least 110 people have been killed and 670 injured in the Ahrweiler district in Rhineland-Palatinate alone. In North Rhine-Westphalia the number of confirmed fatalities was 46. At least one person died in the floods in Bavaria.

Search for relatives in Erftstadt

In Erftstadt west of Cologne, too, many people are still looking for their relatives. A spokesman for the Rhein-Erft district said 34 people were reported to the city’s “personal information center”, whose whereabouts are uncertain. On Saturday the number of those wanted was 59. “Fortunately, some have already been found,” said the spokesman.

In the Blessem district, experts want to check the stability of the subsoil. According to the city, you should examine the edges of a landslide. The situation remains tense. The floods had created a huge crater in Blessem. At least three houses and part of the castle collapsed.

Kramp-Karrenbauer with soldiers: “Everyone is deeply affected”

Federal Defense Minister Annegret Kramp-Karrenbauer also traveled to the flood area on Sunday. She was dismayed during a visit to Erftstadt. “I am a bit at a loss for words,” said the CDU minister WDR. She spoke to soldiers who were on the scene in relief operations. Including very experienced people who were at the Oder flood or were abroad a lot. “Everyone told me that they have never experienced anything like this before, everyone is deeply affected,” said Kramp-Karrenbauer.

A total of around 800 soldiers with around 110 vehicles are currently on the road to support in Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia. The big challenge for the next few days will be to clarify where the troops can help when restoring the infrastructure. That takes a “very, very great effort,” said Kramp-Karrenbauer.

Storm damage to 600 kilometers of railway tracks

According to Federal Transport Minister Andreas Scheuer (CSU), the final extent of the infrastructure damage will only be assessed after further clearance work. “If 20 of the 35 bridges on the Ahr have been destroyed, then you can already guess the huge task that lies ahead of us,” said Scheuer of the “Passauer Neue Presse” and the “Donaukurier”.

Forecasts for the clearance of railway lines are also “only possible after extensive damage assessment, which is only progressing slowly due to the complicated situation on site”. According to information from Deutsche Bahn, a first picture of the situation shows that there is “massive damage” at 80 stations and stops as well as more than 600 kilometers of tracks in North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate.

Telecommunications companies are making headway in rebuilding the network supply after cellular communications in the flood regions failed in some cases. Two thirds of the 150 affected stations are now back in operation, said a spokesman for the network operator Telefónica (o2).