The red areas on the map below show where there has been flooding in recent days. In Germany, the states of Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia have been worst hit. In Belgium ...

In some more rural areas, it has already burst its banks.Authorities in Brandenburg in eastern Germany continue to prepare ...

Continued heavy rainfall is expected in some areas of Germany already affected by flooding, the national weather service DWD said. Much of the country has been hit by severe rain since Christmas ...

A massive clean up operation is under way in Germany Germany's government has hit back at criticism over its warning systems after the worst flooding in decades left at least 160 people dead.

Many areas in Germany experienced 24-hour rainfall that brought between 3.9 to 5.9 inches of rain - more than a month's worth of rain, according to CNN.