Residents say flood-hit German towns got little warning

A man uses a wheelbarrow to move debris through the streets of the flood hit town of Ahrweiler, Germany, on July 23, 2021. With the death toll and economic damage from last week’s floods in Germany continuing to rise, questions have been raised about why systems designed to warn people of the impending disaster didn’t work. — AP

AHRWEILER, Germany: Like other residents of his town in Germany, Wolfgang Huste knew a flood was coming. What nobody told him, he says, was how bad it would be.

The 66-year-old antiquarian bookseller from Ahrweiler said the first serious warning to evacuate or move to higher floors of buildings close to the Ahr River came through loudspeaker announcements around 8pm on July 14. Huste then heard a short emergency siren blast and church bells ringing, followed by silence.