Storm - Flood situation: fighting against flooding and breathing a sigh of relief
With regard to the flooding situation, there are signs of an easing of the situation, but this will probably not last long everywhere. It should remain largely dry on Thursday, as the German Weather Service (DWD) announced in Offenbach on Wednesday. "At least the amount of precipitation will be limited for the time being, so that the flood situation on some rivers can continue to ease, albeit only slowly," said meteorologist Adrian Leyser from the weather forecasting center.
On Wednesday, the flood situation in Germany was mixed: in some places the situation calmed down, elsewhere it is still critical, for example in Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt on the Elbe and in parts of Lower Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia.
The flood situation, which appears to have eased for the time being, is unlikely to last. "Taking due account of the uncertainties, it must be stated that the risk of heavier rainfall is increasing significantly again," says the meteorologist. "In the west and northwest in particular, the weather models indicate a lot of wet weather, which will probably cause river levels to rise rapidly again."
Climate change is making extreme weather events more likely. Potsdam climate researcher Stefan Rahmstorf wrote on X on Christmas Eve: "Extreme precipitation is increasing worldwide and in our region due to #global warming. Climate researchers have been warning about this for over 30 years; the data from weather stations has long since confirmed this."
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What is the flood situation like in individual federal states?
Saxony and Bavaria
In Saxony, the situation remains tense, especially on the Elbe. On other rivers such as the Mulde and the Weiße Elster, the water levels fell on Wednesday. On the Elbe, the second-highest alert level 3 was in force at the Schöna gauge on the border with the Czech Republic. In Dresden, the relevant water level of six meters was not yet reached. The six-meter mark was predicted to be exceeded on Thursday morning. The city of Dresden had already declared alert level 3 on Tuesday evening.
According to the flood information service, the flood situation in Bavaria is continuing to ease. According to the situation report on Wednesday, the Danube is still experiencing minor outbursts at alert level 1 as water levels fall.
Saxony-Anhalt
Parts of Saxony-Anhalt can breathe a sigh of relief - but water levels continue to rise on the Elbe. In the district of Mansfeld-Südharz, where the Kelbra reservoir flooded after unusually heavy rainfall, no flooding of towns is expected. No further evacuations are expected to be necessary, the district announced on Wednesday morning. The approximately 180 residents of the village of Thürungen had been advised to leave their homes the day before. The highest flood alert level 4 is still in force on the Helme. According to the State Office for Flood Protection and Water Management, the situation has eased in the north of the state and in the Harz Mountains.
Thuringia
Individual residents of the village of Windehausen in northern Thuringia, which was evacuated due to flooding, can check on their homes and should open their cellars. This was announced by Matthias Marquardt, mayor of the town of Heringen, to which Windehausen belongs, following consultations with a crisis team. The plan is for the residents of two streets in the town to open their cellars first so that the pumping out can begin there.
Lower Saxony
The flood situation in Lower Saxony remains tense. "The worst is over, but it's not over yet," a spokeswoman for the State Agency for Water Management, Coastal Defence and Nature Conservation told dpa. Levels are expected to continue to rise, especially on the Middle Weser and the upper reaches of the Aller, Leine and Oker rivers. The town of Rinteln on the Weser has lifted the evacuation of a road due to the threat of flooding.
The floods also hit the Serengeti Park Hodenhagen hard: According to the park, large parts of the grounds north of Hanover are flooded and in some places cannot be reached at all or can only be reached with Unimogs or tractors.
North Rhine-Westphalia
The situation in North Rhine-Westphalia also remained tense on Wednesday. Despite local breaks in the rain, numerous streams and rivers continued to flood. Even after the Christmas holidays, the Weser in the east of the state was the worst affected, according to the NRW State Office for Nature, Environment and Consumer Protection.
Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate
The water levels in Hesse continue to fall in many places. "With a general calming of the weather today, the flood situation in Hesse is gradually easing slightly," said the Hessian State Agency for Nature Conservation, Environment and Geology. On the Main, however, there is still a slight rise in water levels. The situation was similar in Rhineland-Palatinate: "Water levels are falling at the Upper Rhine gauging stations," said the Rhineland-Palatinate Flood Forecasting Center on Wednesday.
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- Despite the easing of the flood situation in Offenbach, meteorologist Adrian Leyser from the DWD warned of an increase in the risk of heavier rainfall.
- Climate change, as highlighted by Potsdam climate researcher Stefan Rahmstorf, is making extreme weather events more likely, including floods.
- In Saxony, the flood situation remains tense, especially on the Elbe, with the second-highest alert level 3 in force at the Schöna gauge.
- In Bavaria, the flood situation is continuing to ease, with the Danube experiencing minor outbursts at alert level 1 as water levels fall.
- Parts of Saxony-Anhalt can breathe a sigh of relief, but water levels continue to rise on the Elbe, with no further evacuations expected in the district of Mansfeld-Südharz.
- In Thuringia, individual residents of the flooded village of Windehausen can check on their homes and open their cellars for pumping out.
- The flood situation in Lower Saxony remains tense, with levels expected to continue rising, especially on the Middle Weser and upper reaches of the Aller, Leine, and Oker rivers.
- The floods also hit the Serengeti Park Hodenhagen hard, with large parts of the grounds north of Hanover flooded.
- The situation in North Rhine-Westphalia remained tense, with numerous streams and rivers continuing to flood, especially on the Weser in the east of the state.
- In Hesse, the water levels continued to fall in many places, but there was still a slight rise in water levels on the Main.
- In Rhineland-Palatinate, water levels were falling at the Upper Rhine gauging stations, although the situation remained critical in some areas, such as on the Neckar.
Source: www.stern.de
