There are at least 163 dead in Germany, according to authorities. The hardest-hit areas in Germany are Rhineland-Palatinate, where 117 have been killed in the flooding and in North Rhine-Westphalia, where at least 46 people died and 138 remain unaccounted for, the Koblenz Police and the German Ministry of Interior said.
In Belgium, at least 36 are dead and 160 others remain unaccounted, according to the Belgian prime minister's office.
In a joint statement, the German Communist Party (DKP), the New Communist Party of the Netherlands (NCP) and the Communist Party of Luxemburg point out:
"The catastrophic floods in western Europe have lead to the tragic loss of many human lives. Our hearts go out the victims of the floods and their families. Thousands of families are faced with the destruction of their homes or severe damage.
We express our solidarity with all the people that are affected by the floods. We demand from the governments to ensure that all damage due to the floods is fully compensated.
The floods show the necessity to strengthen flood prevention. This becomes more urgent as the risk of floods increases due to climate change, which affects (amongst other things) the intensity and quantity of rainfall in the region. All the potential of contemporary science, flood prevention methods and spatial planning must be employed to protect the lives of the people, to ensure that such tragedies do not occur."
From its side, a statement issued by the Press Bureau of the CC of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) reads:
"The KKE expresses its solidarity to the people of Germany and the other countries in Central Europe who face an incalculable disaster, with dozens of deaths, thousands missing and homeless.
The fact that these disasters take place in one of the most developed regions of Europe confirms that the lack of modern infrastructure and protection measures for the people's lives, the commercialization of land and the degradation of the environment is the imprint of the capitalist road of development, which the people in all over the world are facing in a tragic way.
Above all, it confirms that the enormous potential of science and technology are sacrificed in the altar of profit and aren't utilized for the satisfaction of the people's needs".
