German Chancellor, Angela Merkel has concluded plans to visit flood-ravaged western Germany on Sunday (Tomorrow), where the worst rainfall in living memory has caused huge destruction and left no fewer than 130 people dead, regional officials have revealed.
Merkel will travel to the hard-hit town of Schuld in Rhineland-Palatinate state, a spokeswoman for the regional interior ministry told reporters on Saturday, confirming earlier media reports.
The visit is set to take place in the afternoon, the spokeswoman confirmed.
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Merkel has called the flooding a national ‘tragedy’ and promised support from the federal government to help the affected areas rebuild and recover.
Africa Today News, New York gathered that German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier had ealier toured the town of Erftstadt in the western state of North-Rhine Westphalia on Saturday, to survey the damage from a massive landslide caused by the extreme weather.
The main candidates in the race to succeed Merkel at September’s general election have all travelled to the stricken areas in recent days.
Merkel’s visit has been delayed because she only returned on Friday from a high-profile trip to Washington, her last official visit as chancellor.
Speaking alongside US President Joe Biden at the White House on Thursday, Merkel said her ‘heart goes out to all of those who in this catastrophe lost their loved ones’.
AFRICA TODAY NEWS, NEW YORK