Weather - Flood situation remains tense: Onlookers at the dam
The Lower Saxony Water Management, Coastal Defence and Nature Conservation Agency(NLWKN) expects the flood situation to remain tense in the coming days. "The situation is indeed very tense throughout Lower Saxony," said NLWKN Director Anne Rickmeyer on Tuesday at an on-site meeting with Minister President Stephan Weil (SPD) at the Okertalsperre reservoir in the Harz Mountains. Rickmeyer emphasized that rising water levels are to be expected in many parts of the country in the coming days. "We have flood situations in the major rivers, but of course we also have many small streams swelling all over the country."
The latest rain forecast from the German Weather Service is optimistic. "For now, I'm happy that it's not supposed to rain for two to three days," said Rickmeyer. "But that doesn't mean that we're already seeing falling water levels everywhere, because we simply have a lot of water in the system." She is also very concerned about the Middle Weser. "We're also expecting maximum water levels there in the next few days." The highest level has apparently been reached in Hannoversch Münden, where the Fulda and Werra merge to form the Weser. But it will take some time for this peak to be reached further down the river.
A further rise in water levels can also be expected on the Oker. On Tuesday morning, the dam was full and the automatic overflow spillway was opened, said Andreas Lange, Head of Resources and authorized signatory at the operator Harzwasserwerke. The water is now pouring into the Oker in a large fountain and causing the water levels to rise further. Hundreds of onlookers watched the event at the dam on Tuesday.
"This is an extraordinary situation," said Lange. The dam, from which the operators had previously deliberately released water in order to be able to absorb more, was now about 100 percent full. As a result, the automatic emergency spillway was activated at 4 a.m. and is now discharging water into the river. "We last had this in 1994, many years ago." Currently, 20 cubic meters per second are being discharged into the Oker. The Innerste dam is now also full, and the emergency spillway was opened at 1 am.
According to Lange, the situation at the other four dams in the Harz Mountains is even better. At present, it is not expected that any more dams will fill up. Some of the surplus water from the Okertal dam could even be discharged into the Granetal dam, which is not yet full. Of the 30 to 40 cubic meters that flow into the Oker dam every second, only 20 cubic meters would therefore have to be discharged into the Oker.
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The flood situation in Lower Saxony is being closely monitored by the State enterprise, NLWKN. Nature conservation efforts are crucial in managing the situation. The German Weather Service (DWD) has predicted bad weather, which could exacerbate the situation. The Okertalsperre reservoir in Lower Saxony is currently dealing with high water levels, and the dam has had to open its emergency spillway to contain the flood. The incident has attracted hundreds of onlookers, including Minister President Stephan Weil (SPD) of Germany. The damage caused by the flood is substantial, with ochre-colored water staining the landscape. The Harz Mountains are currently managing their dams to prevent further flooding, with the Okertal dam releasing excess water into the Granetal dam. The Middle Weser is also expected to reach its maximum water level in the coming days.
Source: www.stern.de
