German, Dutch towns reinforce dikes amid heavy rains

BERLIN, AMSTERDAM: Firefighters and volunteers worked to reinforce dikes against rising floodwaters in northern and eastern Germany, as heavy rains caused rivers and streams to flow over their banks and forced several towns to evacuate residents.

The dpa news agency said that the city of Braunschweig, Lower Saxony, deployed an artificial dike to protect its downtown area, while in Windehausen, Thuringia, hundred