The catastrophic floods that swept northwest Europe last week were a stark warning that stronger dams, dykes, and drainage systems are as urgent as long-term climate change prevention, as once-rare weather events become more common. As the waters recede, officials are assessing the destruction left by the torrents that terrorized swathes of western and southern Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands, smashing buildings and bridges and killing more than 150 people. German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer, who visited the spa town of Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler on Monday, said the cost of reconstruction would run […]