Latest news Floods in the Czech Republic and Poland - Germany vigilant
Germany's eastern neighbors Poland and the Czech Republic experienced flooding overnight after continuous rain. Emergency services in the two countries as well as in Austria and Slovakia had already prepared for storms on Friday. The heavy rainfall east of the Elbe and Spree rivers is also expected to cause the water levels of the Elbe in Saxony to rise.
14.09.2024, 07:11
SDA
Alert level 1 is expected to be reached at the Schöna gauge on Saturday evening, and for Dresden early Sunday morning, according to a warning issued by the Saxon State Flood Center. The highest water levels at the Saxon Elbe gauges are currently expected from Wednesday and Thursday next week.
Time is therefore pressing for the demolition work on the collapsed section of Dresden's Carola Bridge. "Time is running out," said fire department spokesman Michael Klahre on Friday evening. A specialist company is working around the clock to remove the debris. The plan is to clear the entire area of bridge C, with the exception of the section that fell into the river early Wednesday morning. This is to prevent consequential damage in the event of imminent flooding. According to current information, the work should be completed by Sunday evening.
For Saxony, the German Weather Service (DWD) reported early Saturday morning that the continuous rain is expected to subside by midday on Saturday. The night into Sunday is expected to remain largely free of precipitation. According to the forecast, rain will then set in again on Sunday.
Heavy rain in the Czech Republic
The cause of the swelling of the Elbe is said to be heavy rainfall in the Elbe and Vltava catchment areas in the Czech Republic. In Germany's neighboring country, the third flood alert level "endangered" was declared for around 20 rivers and streams, as reported by the CTK news agency.
Elsewhere, sudden heavy rain caused flooding. Czech television published footage on X from the village of Mikulovice near the border with Poland. There you can see how the masses of water flooded houses, garages and streets in the early morning.
"The water flowed down into the village from the surrounding fields," it said. The fire department offered residents the chance to take shelter in the local gymnasium. So far, however, no one has taken advantage of this.
In Budweis (Ceske Budejovice) in southern Bohemia, firefighters have been erecting flood protection walls since Friday evening. They loaded sandbags on the Maltsch River and erected a prefabricated barrier on the banks of the Vltava.
According to meteorologists, the water levels of the rivers in the Czech Republic will continue to rise over the weekend. In some places, it has already rained 50 to 110 liters per square meter since Friday.
Two villages in Poland evacuated
The situation is also serious in south-western Poland. In the Opole region, the Biala Glucholaska river overflowed its banks. From the village of Glucholazy near the border with the Czech Republic, 400 residents had to be evacuated to safety. Interior Minister Tomasz Simoniak was at the scene and posted pictures of the rescue workers' work on X.
One hundred firefighters and 60 police officers were deployed in the village, Simoniak wrote. Some residents also had to be evacuated from the village of Morow because the Mora River had burst its banks. In total, the fire department responded to 400 calls in the region.
The Meteorological Institute continues to expect persistent rainfall. The alarm level has already been exceeded at 35 water measuring stations, the institute announced on X.
Snow line in the Alps is dropping
For Germany, the German Weather Service predicted heavy continuous rain in the Alps and in the eastern low mountain ranges. In the Alps above 1,200 meters, the precipitation will come down as snow. At high altitudes above 2,000 meters, around one meter of fresh snow is possible. This is "somewhat unusual" for this time of year, said a DWD spokesperson. At night, the snow line could drop to around 1,000 meters.
The fact that there is expected to be snow instead of rain at higher altitudes will have a "flood-dampening" effect, according to the flood information service. Nevertheless, higher water levels are expected in south-eastern Bavaria - from the Isar catchment area to the Berchtesgadener Land and the Bavarian Forest.
Austria expects 300 liters of rain in some areas
In Austria, weather experts are expecting massive amounts of rain with flooding and landslides in the coming days. According to the state meteorological institute Geosphere Austria, more than 300 liters of rain per square meter could fall in parts of Lower Austria and Upper Austria by Tuesday.
Emergency services are preparing for a flood along the Danube in Austria, which occurs approximately every 10 to 15 years. Among other things, mobile flood protection systems have been set up and sandbags filled.
