More than 30 perished and dozens went missing as heavy floods ravage Germany and Western Europe

Storms brought torrential rain that caused rivers to burst their banks and sent torrents of water sweeping through cities and villages in Germany, Belgium and elsewhere across the region.

By Edward Era Barbacena

Heavy flooding in western Europe left dozens of people dead on Wednesday, with more missing and many stranded on rooftops.

Storms brought torrential rain that caused rivers to burst their banks and sent torrents of water sweeping through cities and villages in Germany, Belgium and elsewhere across the region.

Authorities in Germany declared an emergency as the floods there killed at least 33 people, swept away cars and caused buildings to collapse.

"It's a disaster! There are dead, missing and many who are still in danger," said Malu Dreyer, premier of the western state of Rhineland-Palatinate. "All emergency services are on duty around the clock and risk their own lives," she added.

Police in the western city of Koblenz, southeast of Cologne, said at least 18 people had died in Ahrweiler county, with dozens more reported missing and dozens trapped on the roofs of their houses awaiting rescue.

Authorities have used inflatable boats and helicopters to identify and rescue those left stranded in the floods, and the German army deployed 200 soldiers to assist in the rescue operation.

In the western county of Euskirchen, south of Cologne, authorities said on Thursday that at least eight people had died in connection with the floods, with rescue operations hampered after phone and internet connections went down in part of the region.

An official death count in the village of Schlund has yet to be updated by police in Koblenz and currently stands at four.

However, the police said at least six houses had collapsed overnight in the community and that "many people have been reported missing to us."

Meanwhile, authorities in the Rhine-Sieg county just south of Cologne ordered several villages to be evacuated due to fears that a nearby dam could break.

The full extent of the damage caused by the flooding is still unclear, with floodwater and landslides cutting off access to villages and roadways.

In neighboring Belgium, at least one person was reported to have drowned, while another was missing after eastern parts of the country were hit in the downpour, which saw water levels rise to unprecedented levels in some towns.

In eastern Eupen, which sits on the German border, a man was reported dead after being swept away by a torrent of water, a local governor told RTBF network.

Weather experts said a near-stationary low-pressure weather system had caused unprecedented downpours in Belgium and the Netherlands.

France has also seen heavy rains, while parts of Britain's capital, London, and southern England were hit with torrential rains and floods earlier this week.

German weather service DWD has predicted that heavy rains would ease on Thursday.

Meanwhile, high temperatures of 86 degrees Fahrenheit or higher were expected Thursday in parts of northern Europe.

The Ahr river that flows into the Rhine rose and caused flooding in western Germany

Storms brought torrential rain that caused rivers to burst their banks and sent torrents of water sweeping through cities and villages in Germany, Belgium and elsewhere across the region.

Authorities in Germany declared an emergency as the floods there killed at least 33 people, swept away cars and caused buildings to collapse.

"It's a disaster! There are dead, missing and many who are still in danger," said Malu Dreyer, premier of the western state of Rhineland-Palatinate. "All emergency services are on duty around the clock and risk their own lives," she added.

Police in the western city of Koblenz, southeast of Cologne, said at least 18 people had died in Ahrweiler county, with dozens more reported missing and dozens trapped on the roofs of their houses awaiting rescue.

Authorities have used inflatable boats and helicopters to identify and rescue those left stranded in the floods, and the German army deployed 200 soldiers to assist in the rescue operation.

In the western county of Euskirchen, south of Cologne, authorities said on Thursday that at least eight people had died in connection with the floods, with rescue operations hampered after phone and internet connections went down in part of the region.

An official death count in the village of Schlund has yet to be updated by police in Koblenz and currently stands at four.

However, the police said at least six houses had collapsed overnight in the community and that "many people have been reported missing to us."

Meanwhile, authorities in the Rhine-Sieg county just south of Cologne ordered several villages to be evacuated due to fears that a nearby dam could break.

The full extent of the damage caused by the flooding is still unclear, with floodwater and landslides cutting off access to villages and roadways.

In neighboring Belgium, at least one person was reported to have drowned, while another was missing after eastern parts of the country were hit in the downpour, which saw water levels rise to unprecedented levels in some towns.

In eastern Eupen, which sits on the German border, a man was reported dead after being swept away by a torrent of water, a local governor told RTBF network.

Weather experts said a near-stationary low-pressure weather system had caused unprecedented downpours in Belgium and the Netherlands.

France has also seen heavy rains, while parts of Britain's capital, London, and southern England were hit with torrential rains and floods earlier this week.

German weather service DWD has predicted that heavy rains would ease on Thursday.

Meanwhile, high temperatures of 86 degrees Fahrenheit or higher were expected Thursday in parts of northern Europe.

The night between Wednesday and Thursday was the hottest in history, the Finnish weather service company Foreca said Thursday with the mercury reaching 75.6 degrees Fahrenheit.

The floods have caused Germany's worst mass loss of life in years.

It comes as German Chancellor Angela Merkel is in Washington to meet with President Joe Biden in what looks to be her final visit to the White House before she steps down from her role this fall.

In a statement shared on Twitter by German government spokesperson Steffen Seibert, Merkel said she was "shocked" by the catastrophe unfolding at home.

My condolences go out to the families of the dead and missing," the chancellor said. "I thank the many tireless helpers and emergency services from the bottom of my heart."