Flags at half-staff in Belgian Parliament, PM residence

Flags across Belgium were lowered to half mast on Tuesday marking the start of a national day of mourning for the victims of deadly flooding in Western Europe.

Belgian and European Union flags outside the Belgian Federal Parliament and Prime Minister's office in Brussels were lowered at 7am local time (0500GMT).

At least 196 people have died from the heavy rain which fell in western Germany, eastern Belgium and the Netherlands in recent days.

They included 117 confirmed deaths in the worst-affected German region, Rhineland-Palatinate, while 47 were killed in the neighbouring state of North Rhine-Westphalia, and at least one in Bavaria.

The death toll in Belgium was 31.

Authorities said they were likely to find more victims among destroyed homes as an operation to retrieve the victims continued.