HOLGER HANSEN GERMAN authorities have faced a mounting outcry over deadly floods that engulfed large parts of the country last week, catching Europe's richest economy flat-footed in a disaster that had been predicted days earlier. As Chancellor Angela Merkel travelled to the disaster zone for the second time, there were growing questions about how well prepared local and national authorities were for the floods that swept through defenceless towns and villages last week. "There were warnings about the masses of debris and floodwaters that were rolling towards these people and these warnings were not handled at all in the way…