Berlin: German Chancellor Angela Merkel headed to the flood disaster zone in the country on Tuesday, the government was surrounded by a question about how the richest economy in Europe was arrested with a predicted flood the previous day.
Floods have killed more than 160 people in Germany since torging the village, sweeping houses, roads and bridges last week, highlighting the gaps in the way of severe weather warnings in the population.
With the state around 10 weeks from the national election, the flood has placed the skills of the management of the German leaders on the agenda, with opposition politicians suggest that the death toll reveal a serious failure in the readiness of the German flood.
Government officials on Monday rejected the advice that they had done too little to prepare flooding and said the warning system had worked.
When the search continued for survivors, Germany began calculating the financial costs of the worst natural disasters in almost 60 years.
On his first visit to a flooded city on Sunday, a shaken Merkel described flooding as “scary”, promising Swift financial assistance.
Development of destroyed infrastructure will require “main financial efforts” in the coming years, a draft document shows on Tuesday.
For immediate assistance, the federal government plans to provide 200 million euros ($ 236 million) in emergency assistance to repair buildings, damage local infrastructure and to help people in crisis situations, draft documents, will go to the cabinet on Wednesday, showing.
It will come at a peak of 200 million euros that will come from 16 federal states.
The government also hopes for financial support from the European Union Solidarity Fund.
During a visit on Saturday to the Belgian section was also flooded, the head of the European Commission Ursula Von Der Leyen told the European community with them.
“We are with you mourning and we will be with you in rebuilding,” he said.
South Germany has also been flooded and the Bavarian state initially produced 50 million euros in emergency assistance for victims, said Premier Bavaria on Tuesday.
German Minister of Environment Svulze called for greater financial resources to prevent extreme weather events caused by climate change.
“Today’s events in so many places in Germany show that the strength of what consequences of climate change can be about all of us,” he told the Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper.
At present, the government is limited to what can be done to support the climbers and prevention of drought by the constitution, he said, added that he would support the adaptation of climate change in basic law.
Experts said the floods that hit northwestern Europe last week had to act as a warning that prevention of long-term climate change was needed.