Soldiers and residents in southwestern Poland are laying sandbags near swollen rivers around the city of Wroclaw to protect homes and businesses after days of flooding across Central Europe.

Poland joins Austria, the Czech Republic and Romania in being hard hit by floods after record rains in the region that started a week ago. Authorities have reported 23 deaths, with seven each in Poland and Romania, five in Austria and four in the Czech Republic.

Climate change is influencing extreme weather events like the flooding across six European countries that has led to mass evacuations of cities as the waters continue to rise.