Inundation - Hours of fear on the Danube: Additional fatalities unveiled in Bavaria
The flood conditions in Bavaria remain tense, despite the initial indications of ease in certain regions. The water levels near the Danube in eastern Bavaria were still quite high on Wednesday. While there were some minor subsiding instances, the situation remained critical in Regensburg in the early afternoon.
Baden-Württemberg, on the other hand, is gradually returning to normal. Cleanup tasks started on Tuesday. Over the past few days, as much rain has fallen in southern Germany as only every 50 to 100 years.
Fatalities associated with the floods in Bavaria have increased to four, according to police reports. A 79-year-old woman was discovered dead on Wednesday in the Mindel Canal in Swabia. She was reported missing in Jettingen-Scheppach near Augsburg on Sunday.
A total of six people have lost their lives due to the floods in southern Germany, with four of them in Bavaria. Additionally, Bavarian Interior Ministry reported on Tuesday that several people have gone missing, including a 22-year-old firefighter in Swabia. The number of missing individuals has been shifting hourly.
Despite predictions from meteorologists that Germany won't experience a new weather front, there's no guarantee for the floods. According to the German Weather Service (DWD), there might still be heavy rain in the southern region. However, the worst downpours are over.
Climate change has been linked to the increase in extreme weather events, and climate activists have accused the federal government of a lack of enthusiasm in combating global warming in light of the flood disaster in southern Germany. Luisa Neubauer of the climate protection movement Fridays for Future expressed her thoughts to the German Press Agency in Berlin: "These visits are symbolic politics with a bitter aftertaste, as long as Olaf Scholz neglects his comments on the climate crisis on his way back home." Scholz had visited the flood-stricken region on Monday.
Regensburg in Bavaria began allowing water to pass through the flood barriers along the Danube due to completely saturated ground. The fear was that the ground and the protective elements in the Werftstrasse would fail, so water was requested to flow through to optimize the stability of the subsoil and the flood barriers. On Tuesday evening, residents in Regensburg had to vacate about 30 houses because the ground was becoming softer due to high groundwater levels.
Flooding in Passau is subsiding slowly. Water levels on the Danube and Inn rivers were gradually decreasing, but they were still at a high level. The flood situation in Passau will continue to ease more slowly on Wednesday compared to Tuesday evening, as reported by the Bavarian Flood Information Service. As a precaution, barrier walls consisting of sandbags were built at the harbor in Deggendorf on Wednesday. However, there's no risk to the inhabitants, as reported by the district administration.
All measuring stations along the Danube between Schwabisch Donauworth and Passau reported peak levels in the level four alert area - the highest flood alert level - on Wednesday.
The Bodenseekreis community of Meckenbeuren was one of the main flood centers in Bavaria. A school was flooded, and the Minister President examined the situation personally. Things are on the mend. "The crisis team has ceased operation today," claimed a spokesperson for the town on Wednesday. Clean-up efforts have been in progress for over a day and a half. "The sunny weather has greatly aided the cleanup efforts."
Rescue squads in Bavaria continued to hunt for a firefighter who went missing after capsizing in his boat during a flood response in Offingen on Sunday. The 22-year-old has yet to be found. There's still belief that he is alive. "The chances of finding him alive are becoming slimmer with every passing day."
The story of a 32-year-old woman being rescued from a tree in the flooded Silver Forest near Neu-Ulm, where she'd been for two and a half days, offers hope. However, many individuals are still missing. As of now, at least five people have perished in the floods in southern Germany, three of them in Bavaria.
Roads and railways in Bavaria were closed on Wednesday due to flooding and underwater currents. For instance, the railway disclosed that no ICE trains were functioning between Donauworth and Augsburg and between Nuremberg and Wuerzburg in the morning. The heavily strained long-distance traffic corridor between Ulm and Augsburg was only partially available.
In spite of recurring warnings from authorities and numerous closures, spectators interfered with rescue crews in flood areas. In Deggendorf, a woman swam in a flooded underground passage on Monday evening, wearing only a bathing suit.
