Paragraph 2
Torrential rain caused
rivers to burst their
. This caused
floods that washed away houses, roads and
across Germany, Belgium and other countries. The death
is now 190 and many people are
. Towns are covered in
and are unrecognisable. Ms Merkel said it was "
". The clean-up operation will take years. A
questioned Germany's preparedness for floods and the
of flood defences.
