German troops sent in to help its flooded cities

Germany dispatched thousands of soldiers Tuesday to help cities and towns cope with flooding from the rain-soaked Danube and other southern rivers - reinforcements that came a day after the Bavarian city of Passau saw its worst flooding since 1501. Chancellor Angela Merkel toured flooded regions of southeastern Germany on Tuesday, pledging at least 50 million euros ($65 million) in immediate federal help and holding out the possibility for more. She told reporters in Passau, a city of 50,000 on the Austrian border, that the damage looked even worse than during the massive flooding that hit central Europe in 2002, according to a report of the Associated Press. At least eight people have been reported dead so far and nine missing in the floods sweeping through Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the Czech Republic. Some 4,000 German soldiers were called in as well as more than 2,000 federal disaster workers and 600 federal police to sandbag areas in danger of flooding and provide other assistance. Water levels were still rising in major rivers such as the Danube and Elbe as well as tributaries.