Full basements, flooded streets, evacuated houses: the flood situation in southern Germany remains complicated. Many small communities in and Bavaria are affected, with thousands of volunteers participating in emergency efforts. The balance so far is one firefighter dead and two people missing. On Monday (3.6.2024), German Chancellor Olaf Scholz visits the flooded area.
The situation in Baden-Württemberg worsens
After the overnight rains, the situation has worsened in some regions of Baden-Württemberg. Due to new rainfall, the water continues to rise and houses are being evacuated, especially in the region near Stuttgart. In the municipality of Ebersbach an der Fils, residents of several streets had to be taken to safety. So far, it has not been possible to determine how many people are affected.
Torrential rains also affected the small town of Rudersberg in the Rems-Murr district, with several roads closed. Also in the Black Forest, several landslides occurred in the Schwarzwald-Baar district.
Trouble in Bavaria
The dam on the Paar River, a tributary of the Danube, in Pfaffenhofen an der Ilm, burst in three places, according to a spokeswoman for the administration of this Bavarian district. The waters of the Danube continue to rise and the Bavarian city of Regensburg had to declare a state of emergency.
According to the Bavarian Flood Information Service, the water level at one measuring point reached 5.90 meters. In the last major flood, on June 4, 2013, it reached 6.82 meters.
In Rudersberg in the Rems-Murr district of Baden-Württemberg, even the firefighters were surprised by the rapid rise of the water and had to cancel an evacuation, according to the ntv channel.
Due to flooding in the Filstal Valley, several people were evacuated from some homes in Uhingen, southeast of Stuttgart, in Baden-Württenberg, and the Göppingen district office to which the town belongs estimates that many people are in danger.
In the Ostalb district, some municipalities were partially evacuated as a preventive measure against the worsening situation. In the affected areas of Baar-Ebenhausen and Manching, all residents have been asked to vacate the ground floors of their homes and move to higher floors. In Baar-Eberhausen, up to 800 people had to be brought to safety.
Scholz’s visit
The German Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, and the Minister of the Interior, Nancy Faeser, are scheduled to visit Reichershofen, in the district of Pfaffenhofen an der Ilm, this Monday (3.4.2024), together with the head of the Bavarian Government, Markus Söder, and the head of the regional Interior, Joachim Herrmann, to get an idea of the situation and speak with the emergency services.
For its part, the German Meteorological Service (DWD) canceled all warnings for strong storms with heavy rain in Germany, but warned that showers will continue with the possibility of heavy rain in some areas, especially in the south. MS (dpa/efe)
