Houses have collapsed, bridges have been swept away, and the power supply and cellular network have also failed in some cases.

In North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate, the heavy rains have left devastation.

The dismay over the consequences of the extreme weather is great, the number of deaths is increasing and more than a thousand people are said to be still missing.

The relief work is ongoing on site, residents sift through their belongings and politicians sift through the damage.

In the background, state governments and the federal government talk about help for citizens, entrepreneurs and communities.

Jan Hauser

Editor in business.

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Tim Kanning

Editor in business.

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Manfred Schäfers

Business correspondent in Berlin.

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It is clear that the federal government is intervening and wants to help quickly. Federal Finance Minister Olaf Scholz, candidate for Chancellor of the SPD, took a picture on Thursday in Rhineland-Palatinate together with Prime Minister Malu Dreyer (SPD) and announced help. A spokesman for Scholz announced on Friday that the topic will be dealt with in the cabinet next Wednesday. It is still unclear how this will be structured. Talks are ongoing between the Chancellery, the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of the Interior. The spokesman left it open whether the Bundestag will be convened for a special session during the summer break, as well as whether a special fund will again be set up to deal with the flood damage. The Federal Government is also keeping a low profile when it comes to the question of what size it is thinking of.

In a first step, the development bank of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, NRW.Bank, wants to help the flood victims with loans, the interest rates of which they lower to 0.01 percent.

For private individuals this applies to the building renovation program and for companies to a universal loan of up to 2 million euros.

Those affected can apply for the auxiliary loans through their house bank.

The federal development bank, KfW, is still in talks with the federal government about how exactly it can help.

After the Elbe flood in 2002, the state bank granted 1200 subsidized loans totaling 78 million euros.

However, such loans are of course only suitable for a small proportion of those affected.

First set up daycare centers and town hall

Prime Minister Armin Laschet (CDU), candidate for chancellor of the Union, spoke of a flood disaster of historic proportions. "We will repair houses, rebuild bridges, repair roads, but the lives that have been lost in the floods are irreplaceable," he said after a special meeting of his cabinet. He announced a multi-stage aid program: direct aid for those who are on the street, then aid for private cases of hardship and companies, as well as structural aid for municipalities, for example for damaged roads and facilities. The actual clearing work could only begin when the water masses have drained away. Then you will get an overview of the damage. According to Laschet, priority should be given to a destroyed town hall and damaged daycare centers.

"We will need a great financial effort," said Laschet. Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) called him and promised help, as did Scholz. Its ministry has announced tax deferrals for those affected, and prepayments would be suspended. The move also applies to Rhineland-Palatinate. "I am counting on the federal and state governments to help together to make the help possible quickly," said the Prime Minister. "My model is the flood relief 2002."