Flooding in the east: Alert level 1 declared for river sections on the Oder

On the general flood situation in our Weather ticker.

Alert level 1 for river sections Or proclaimed

17:57: A flood alert of level 1 has been declared for sections of the Oder river in Brandenburg. Floodplains and meadows near the banks are expected to begin to flood, the State Office for the Environment announced in the afternoon.

The areas affected are the Oder town of Ratzdorf to Eisenhüttenstadt. In a current flood information from the authorities, it was stated that water levels were initially expected to be in the alarm level I and II range, which would continue to rise from the weekend onwards.

The water level at Ratzdorf, not far from the confluence of the Neisse and Oder, is over 4 meters. Alarm level 3 begins at 5.60 meters. Communities along the Oder have been preparing for flooding on the border river for days. The authority is advising, among other things, to remove cars from flood-prone areas and to stay away from the river.

Number of deaths in Czech Republic rises to four

2.40 p.m.: The number of deaths following the flooding disaster in the Czech Republic has risen to four. The body of a 70-year-old woman who had been missing for days was discovered in the municipality of Kobyle nad Vidnavkou, police said.

The town is located in the Jesenik district in the north-east of the country. The area in the Jeseník Mountains on the border with Poland was particularly badly affected by the storms. At least seven people are still missing in the Czech Republic.

Where the water masses have receded, the major clean-up operation is beginning. Drinking water and power generators are being distributed. According to the Ministry of Defense, more than 300 soldiers are deployed to support the civil authorities: Among other things, they are to build replacement bridges.

Elbe reached Six-meter mark: Second highest flood alert level in Dresden

08.13 am: The Elbe has reached the six-meter mark in Dresden. According to the State Flood Center, the alarm level is now 3 (as of 7:45 a.m.). For residents, this means that built-up areas, inter-municipal roads and railway lines could be flooded. This level already applied at the Schöna gauge in the Saxon Switzerland-Eastern Ore Mountains district – the water level here was around 6.56 meters in the morning.

According to current forecasts, the water level is expected to continue to rise during the day before falling slightly again overnight on Thursday. Accordingly, the flood is not expected to reach the highest alert level 4 at seven meters.

Fast six meters! Water level of the Elbe in Dresden shortly before next alarm level

Wednesday, September 18, 07:09: The water levels of the Elbe in Dresden and Schöna (Saxon Switzerland-Eastern Ore Mountains) continue to rise slowly. Alarm level 3 has not yet been reached in Dresden, according to data from the State Flood Center. 5.98 meters were measured there early on Wednesday morning.

This means that the value is just below the six-meter mark, which triggers the third alarm level. According to the current forecast, however, the water level should reach the guideline value this morning.

For residents, alert level 3 means that built-up areas, inter-municipal roads and railway lines can be flooded. At level 2, agricultural or forestry areas, gardens and other green spaces are primarily flooded, but individual buildings can also be affected.

The guideline value for level 3 has already been exceeded at the Schöna gauge. The water level was 6.54 metres early in the morning. According to current forecasts, the water level will continue to rise during the day before falling slightly again overnight on Thursday. Accordingly, the highest alarm level of seven metres is not expected to be reached.

Saxon Elbe region escapes disaster

18:05: The promenades are flooded, parking lots are impassable and cellars are under water – for the towns near the river such as Wehlen in southeast Saxony, the current flood situation is anything but comfortable.

Nevertheless, Mayor Thomas Matha is relieved. “We are not expecting any major damage,” says the mayor of the town of around 1,500 inhabitants in the Saxon Switzerland-Eastern Ore Mountains district near the Czech border. He also speaks of a slight easing of the situation.

The municipalities along the Elbe have had anxious days. As far as Dresden, the highest alert level 4 was feared following the heavy rainfall and flood disasters in Poland, the Czech Republic and Austria. But so far, the German side has been spared from disaster.

At 6.36 meters, the nearby Schöna gauge is still at alarm level 3, and is expected to rise to 6.68 meters by Wednesday. But the situation remains unclear; they have already had to deal with larger volumes of water here. However, there was not much buffer left – they are talking about a maximum of 50 centimeters.

Flood alert: Neisse, Elbe and Spree overflowed banks

2.43 p.m.: In view of rising water levels, the rivers Lusatian Neisse, Elbe and Spree in Brandenburg have overflowed their banks. Flood alert level 1 is currently in effect at the Spree gauge in Spremberg, at Klein Bademeusel (Spree-Neiße district) and at Elbe-Stadt-Mühlberg (Elbe-Elster district), as stated on the state’s flood portal.

At the lowest alarm level (1 of a total of four levels), the waters begin to overflow their banks. Animals and machines should be removed from flood areas and flood protection systems should be checked.

The regions are taking initial precautions and crisis teams are meeting. In Spremberg, for example, bicycle and pedestrian underpasses have been closed in some places, a spokeswoman said.

One or highest alarm level 4 possible

As a precaution, the construction site of the new A14 bridge in the town of Wittenberge on the Elbe has been secured. The situation on the Oder could become more critical. According to the State Office for the Environment, alarm level 3 is possible there from Friday and later even 4, for example on Sunday near Ratzdorf (Oder-Spree district).

At level 3, individual properties, streets or basements can be flooded. For example, a security service must be deployed on the dykes and protective material must be brought to danger areas. This is clear from the Ministry of the Environment’s description of the different categories.

The highest level, 4, is about disaster prevention, which also includes preparing for evacuations. Larger areas can also be flooded.

Thousands of citizens save the Polish city from dike breach

13:48: The residents of a city in Poland threatened by flooding joined forces to help prevent a dyke from breaking. “Nysa was saved from the worst,” said the head of the regional administration, Monika Jurek, according to the PAP news agency. The water level in the Kłodzko Neisse is now receding. “If it stays that way, we can say that Nysa is safe.”

Dramatic scenes unfolded in the small town around 90 kilometers south of Wroclaw (Breslau) on Tuesday night. The swollen waters of the Glatz Neisse, a tributary of the Oder, are threatening to break through a dyke that protects the city center. Around 60 firefighters and 200 soldiers from the homeland security service were deployed to reinforce the dyke. Large bags of filling material were dropped from helicopters.

The citizens also pitched in. “There were about 2,000 people on the dyke: women, men, children and senior citizens,” Mayor Kordian Kolbiarz told the radio station Rmf.fm that night. They had formed a human chain to transport the sandbags. Although another thin spot later formed, the dyke ultimately withstood the masses of water.

The Polish Zoo asks for help in filling sandbags

10.47 am: The zoo in the Lower Silesian city of Wroclaw asked citizens for help in the face of an expected flood – and found many volunteers. “Dear friends, we need your help. If you have the opportunity and free hands to work, please help us fill sand into bags,” the zoo management wrote on Facebook. 50 volunteers were being sought. A short time later, they added that enough people had already been found for the job.

Oder floods quickly reach levels as high as in 1997

09.28 am: The flood forecasts in Poland on the Oder are only a few centimetres below the record level of 1997. In Brieg (Polish: , Upstream of Wroclaw, a water level of 7.17 metres is expected on Thursday. In 1997 it was 7.30 metres.

In Germany, the major flood wave on the Oder is not expected until the weekend.

Thousands of citizens in Nysa, Poland, fight for their dike

08.13 am: People in southwest Poland are joining forces to fight the floods. In the small town of Nysa, around 90 kilometers south of Wroclaw (Breslau), the waters of the Kłodzko Neisse are threatening to break through a dyke that protects the city center. During the night, many of the town’s residents helped the army and fire service to reinforce the damaged part of the dyke with sandbags. “There were around 2,000 people on the dyke: women, men, children and senior citizens,” Mayor Kordian Kolbiarz told the radio station Rmf.fm. They had formed a human chain to transport the sandbags.

The crisis team met again with Prime Minister Donald Tusk in Wroclaw. The government in Warsaw has declared a state of emergency for the flooded areas. This makes it easier for the authorities to enforce instructions. Tusk said that there are currently very contradictory forecasts from meteorologists as to when the flood could reach the city of Wroclaw. Initially, it was said that the flood wave in the Oder would reach the city on Wednesday. Now it is being talked about Friday. This still needs to be analyzed in detail, Tusk demanded. During the Oder floods in 1997, one third of Wroclaw was under water.

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