By GEIR MOULSON Associated Press
July 18, 2021
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German Chancellor Angela Merkel, rear third left, and the Governor of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, Malu Dreyer, rear fifth left, are seen on a bridge in Schuld, western Germany, Sunday, July 18, 2021 during their visit in the flood-ravaged areas to survey the damage and meet survivors. After days of extreme downpours causing devastating floods in Germany and other parts of western Europe the death toll has risen. (Christof Stache/Pool Photo via AP)
BERLIN (AP) — German Chancellor Angela Merkel surveyed what she called a “surreal, ghostly” scene in a devastated village on Sunday, pledging quick financial aid and a redoubled political focus on curbing climate change as the death toll from floods in Western Europe climbed above 180.