High-Intensity Weather System Approaching Swiftly - In various towns across Bavaria, disaster has been proclaimed.
Following several days of non-stop rainfall, emergency services are responding in Southern Germany as rivers and streams have reached dangerous levels. Ten communities in Bavaria have announced a state of disaster, with the Danube and several of its tributaries seeing significant swelling. The German Weather Service (DWD) has predicted additional showers and thunderstorms tomorrow, increasing the potential for localized flooding during the afternoon hours. These storms are anticipated to be powerful and slow-moving, raising concerns that they will occur on already saturated ground. "If they do fall on saturated ground, we can expect more flooding," the meteorologist stated.
Areas most at risk from the showers and storms include the Swabian Alb region and those slightly to the north, as well as the vicinities of Augsburg, Nuremberg, Bamberg, and Regensburg. In Augsburg, evacuation notices were expanded last night. The majority of the affected towns lie along the Schmutter River. An emergency shelter was established at the Augsburg expo center.
At first, there appeared to be a minimization of the rainfall. A DWD meteorologist asserted on Saturday evening that they wouldn't see as significant an amount of rain tonight as they did last night. "There won't be the major rainfall amounts tonight like there were last night," he clarified.
Two ICE carriages toppled
The persistent rain from the last few days caused two carriages of an ICE train to derail in the Baden-Württemberg town of Schwäbisch Gmünd. The passengers, totaling 185, were unharmed and promptly exited the train. The train was rerouted to the track where the collision occurred due to the flooding in southern Germany.
In Bavaria, the rain led to water levels generally seen only once every 100 years. As a result, the rivers Guenz, Memminger Ach, Kammel, Mindel, Paar, and Maisach were streaming at levels as high as during a century flood. In the northern part of the Upper Bavarian district of Pfaffenhofen an der Ilm, local officials feared an extreme flood.
In the Upper Bavarian town of Schrobenhausen, firefighters and rescue teams readied to evacuate 670 people. This community too had proclaimed a state of disaster.
Assistance from the Bundeswehr sought
Due to the incessant rainfall, the district administration in Dillingen, a town in Swabia's Bavarian region, pronounced a state of disaster. The crisis management team advised that the water level on the Zusam, a tributary of the Danube, was rising. The local crisis team solicited assistance from the Bundeswehr.
