At least 188 people across parts of Western Europe have lost their lives in a series of devastating floods following days of historic levels of rainfall. Towns in river valleys and low-lying plains in Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, France, and Austria have been heavily damaged by flash flooding since Wednesday. Rescue workers are still searching for hundreds listed as missing, while some towns have started cleanup and recovery efforts. Collected below are recent images from some of these hard-hit towns and cities.
Photos: Catastrophic Flooding Across Western Europe
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![Piles of flood debris sit in a mountain valley.]()
Read moreA pile of broken trees and debris is seen in a flooded area following heavy rainfall in Kreuzberg, Germany, on July 17, 2021. #
Wolfgang Rattay / Reuters -
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![Flood damage seen from above, including a large washed-out field.]()
Read moreAn areal view after flooding in the Blessem district of Erftstadt, Germany, on July 16, 2021. #
Rhein-Erft-Kreis via Reuters -
![People carry belongings and pets away from floodwater.]()
Read morePeople with their belongings leave a flooded area after heavy rain hit Oesival, a town in the province of Liège, Belgium, on July 15, 2021. #
Dursun Aydemir / Anadolu Agency / Getty -
![A flooded town, seen in a river valley.]()
Read moreThe Ahr River flows past destroyed houses in Insul, Germany, on July 15, 2021. Because of heavy rainfall, the Ahr dramatically overflowed its banks the evening before. #
Michael Probst / AP -
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![A car rests in a cemetery following flooding.]()
Read moreA car rests in a cemetery following flooding in Dernau, Germany, on July 17, 2021. #
Wolfgang Rattay / Reuters -
![High water flows past trees.]()
Read moreThis aerial view taken in Valkenburg on July 16, 2021, shows the flooded area around the Meuse River in the Netherlands. #
Remko De Waal / ANP / AFP / Getty -
![A river nears the top of its banks during a heavy flood in a city.]()
Read moreA car floats in the Meuse River during heavy flooding in Liège, Belgium, on July 15, 2021. #
Valentin Bianchi / AP -
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![Two men work in a street, surrounded by giant piles of debris.]()
Read moreTwo men work next to debris among houses destroyed by the floods in Schuld near Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, Germany, on July 15, 2021. #
Bernd Lauter / AFP / Getty -
![Flood debris surrounds houses, seen from above.]()
Read moreFlood debris surrounds houses in Schuld, Germany, on July 16, 2021. #
Michael Probst / AP -
![A pile of debris sits jammed up against a railroad bridge.]()
Read moreDriftwood and debris are seen in front of a bridge with a railway track in the municipality of Altenahr, Germany, on July 17, 2021. #
Torsten Silz / AFP / Getty -
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![People wade in deep floodwater in a street.]()
Read moreA woman moves through a flooded street following heavy rains in Liège, on July 15, 2021. #
Bruno Fahy / Belga / AFP / Getty -
![A man holds a box inside a flooded house.]()
Read moreA man holds a box inside a flooded house on July 16, 2021, in Geulle, Netherlands. #
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![A woman sits in her muddy, destroyed apartment.]()
Read moreJutta Schnelleckes sits in the living room of her apartment, which was completely destroyed by the flood on July 17, 2021, in Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, Germany. The furniture has been overturned. Electricity and water do not work. She has been living in the mess for two days. Her husband sits in the bedroom, with the dog, with an injured foot. Firefighters will later escort her out of her apartment and help her find shelter. #
Thomas Lohnes / Getty -
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![Muddied dishes are pictured in a house.]()
Read moreMuddied dishes are pictured in a house in Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, Germany, on July 17, 2021. #
Christof Stache / AFP / Getty -
![Damaged buildings line a river bank.]()
Read moreFlooded houses on July 16, 2021, in Ensival, Belgium #
Olivier Matthys / Getty -
![A road sign sits in a flooded street.]()
Read moreA road sign sits in a flooded street in Erftstadt, Germany, on July 16, 2021. #
Thilo Schmuelgen / Reuters -
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![Floodwater runs under a pedestrian bridge.]()
Read moreA view of a flooded area in Kyllburg, Germany, on July 15, 2021. #
Twitter user @ReneNijholt via Reuters -
![A large patch of garbage sits among flood debris.]()
Read moreTrash is pictured following heavy rainfall in Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, Germany, on July 15, 2021. #
Wolfgang Rattay / Reuters -
![A crustacean walks on a road after flooding subsided.]()
Read moreA crustacean walks on a road after flooding subsided in Schuld, Germany, on July 16, 2021. #
Michael Probst / AP -
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![A helicopter flies above cars partially submerged in floodwater.]()
Read moreA helicopter flies above cars partially submerged in floodwater on the road in the Blessem district of Erftstadt, Germany, on July 17, 2021. #
Thilo Schmuelgen / Reuters -
![Huge piles of debris fill a channel.]()
Read moreWreckage lies in a river channel in Verviers, Belgium, on July 16, 2021. #
Yves Herman / Reuters -
![Several people struggle with rising floodwater near a manhole in a street.]()
Read morePeople struggle with floodwater, after a severe rainstorm and flash floods hit the German states of Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia, on July 16, 2021. #
Abdulhamid Hosbas / Anadolu Agency / Getty -
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![Flood debris fils a channel.]()
Read moreA car is stuck in the channel on July 16, 2021, in the pedestrian area of Bad Münstereifel, Germany. #
Ina Fassbender / AFP / Getty -
![Dozens of people are evacuated in a tractor.]()
Read morePeople are evacuated in a tractor in a flooded street in Valkenburg, Netherlands, on July 15, 2021. #
Patrick van Katwijk / BSR Agency / Getty -
![A woman walks through a heavily damaged street.]()
Read moreA view of streets and residences damaged by the flooding of the Ahr River on July 16, 2021, in Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, Germany. #
Sascha Schuermann / Getty -
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![A worker clears broken trees and rubbish on a road.]()
Read moreA worker clears broken trees and rubbish on a road in Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, Germany, on July 17, 2021. #
Wolfgang Rattay / Reuters -
![People clean debris from an area affected by the flooding.]()
Read morePeople clean debris from an area affected by the flooding in Bad Münstereifel, Germany, on July 18, 2021. #
Thilo Schmuelgen / Reuters -
![People clean debris and mud from a street.]()
Read moreVolunteers and residents start the cleanup process at their shops and restaurants in Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, Germany, on July 18, 2021. #
Thomas Lohnes / Getty -
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