`LAACH, Germany (AP) — Half-destroyed bridges. Train tracks that end in the middle of nowhere. Abandoned ruins in one of the world’s richest countries.

The scars of last year’s deadly floods

Official figures show at least 134 people died in the region in the night from July 14-15, 2021, when heavy rains turned swollen streams into raging torrents that burst their banks and swept away cars, roads and houses. The total death toll across the three countries was at least 239.

Scientists say such extreme weather events are becoming more likely because of climate change. That’s because warmer air can store more water, leading to bigger cloudbursts when it’s released.

Debris from last year's floods lie on a destroyed railway line in the village of Dernau in the Ahrtal valley, Germany, Tuesday, July 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

A worker walks by a home damaged from last year's floods, that is now torn down in the village of Ahrbrueck in the Ahrtal valley, Germany, Wednesday, July 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

German authorities agreed to provide 30 billion euros ($30 billion) to help rebuild regions hit by the floods, making it one of the costliest natural disasters in the country’s history.

For many in the Ahr valley, the pain runs deeper than the loss of a home or business, however. Friends, family members and colleagues are still mourned.

The oldest victim was 97; the youngest was 4. Most of those killed were over 60, but three children, 12 residents of an assisted living facility and a volunteer firefighter were also among the dead. More than 750 people were injured. At least two suicides have been recorded in connection with the floods.

Debris of a flood lies between destroyed houses near the Ahr river in Schuld, Germany, July 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

Prosecutors are still investigating whether officials made mistakes in their response to the disaster. Survivors said they received little notice from authorities that waters would rise so dramatically, even though meteorologists had warned of possible flooding for days.

Experts say the floods of 2021 highlight how no region of the world is safe from the impacts of global warming.

The head of Germany’s disaster protection agency warned that parts of the country may need to be declared no-go zones for housing in future.

“Some areas shouldn’t be resettled due to climate change and the acute risk of natural disasters and catastrophic floods,” Ralph Tiesler said in an interview with the Funke media group published Wednesday. “This is a question that needs to be raised along the coastline too.”

Such warnings have some in the Ahr valley wondering whether disasters that were once thought to strike only every century could happen again soon. And whether it’s better to rebuild that broken bridge and clean those mud-caked belongings — or simply move away.

German leaders including Chancellor Olaf Scholz and President Frank-Walter Steinmeier are scheduled to attend a memorial event in the region’s main town, Ahrweiler, on Thursday.

A house damaged by last year's flood still visible in the village of Ahrbrueck in the Ahrtal valley, Germany, Tuesday, July 5, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

Rails damaged by last year's flood lie next to an empty track bed in Kreuzberg in the Ahrtal valley, Germany, Tuesday, July 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

A damaged clock from last year's floods hangs on a wall in the village of Schuld in the Ahrtal valley, Germany, Tuesday, July 5, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

The letters "Jesus" are written with mud at a damaged house in the village of Ahrweiler in the Ahrtal valley, Germany, Tuesday, July 5, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

Debris from last year's flood sits in front of a destroyed house in the village of Schuld in the Ahrtal valley, Germany, Tuesday, July 5, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

Debris from last year's flood still hangs at a destroyed house in the village of Mayschoss in the Ahrtal valley, Germany, Tuesday, July 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

A cross sits at a makeshift memorial honoring a 2021 flood victim in the village of Mayschoss in the Ahrtal valley, Germany, Tuesday, July 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

Cars are visible in a flood-covered road in Erftstadt, Germany, Saturday, July 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

A flood damaged bicycle path goes through a tunnel near the village of Laach in the Ahrtal valley, Germany, Tuesday, July 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

A worker walks by a flood damaged house that is now torn down in the village of Ahrbrueck in the Ahrtal valley, Germany, Wednesday, July 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

A flood damaged bridge stands at the Ahr river in the village of Rech in the Ahrtal valley, Germany, Tuesday, July 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

A flood damaged bridge stands at the Ahr river in the village of Rech in the Ahrtal valley, Germany, Tuesday, July 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

The remains of a bridge, destroyed by last year's flood, stands at the small Ahr river in the village of Laach in the Ahrtal valley, Germany, Tuesday, July 6, 2022. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

Debris from a flood lies around destroyed houses close to the Ahr river in Schuld, Germany, July 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

A man stands in front of destroyed houses close to the Ahr river in Schuld, Germany, July 15, 2021. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)

A bridge and houses are destroyed at the Ahr river in Schuld, Germany, on July 16, 2021. (AP Photo/Michael Probst)