More than 27 people have been killed in Belgium, while most of the deaths reported so far occurred in Germany.
The group of Italian firefighters and divers – specialised in search and rescue in flooded areas – travelled to Belgium from Venice on Thursday night on board an Italian military aircraft.
In addition to rescuers from Venice, Padua, Treviso and Vicenza, Italy sent jeeps, inflatable boats and a helicopter to Liège.
On Friday afternoon, the Italian rescue team announced that it had saved 40 people trapped in their houses in the area of Tillf, south of Liège.
The team said it was continuing its search and rescue operations in the area.
The death toll across Western Europe now sits at 183, although there are fears this number could still rise higher as more bodies are expected to be found as the waters lower and reveal the extent of the devastation.
Alluvione Belgio, soccorse dal team italiano dei #vigilidelfuoco e portate in un salvo 40 persone rimaste bloccate nelle proprie abitazioni e in una casa di cura nell'area di Tillf, a Sud di #Liegi. Proseguono le ricognizioni nelle aree allagate di Tillf [#16luglio 14:45] pic.twitter.com/tMPrjdNTkK
— Vigili del Fuoco (@emergenzavvf) July 16, 2021
