Flood warning
May 25, 2010
Germany is preparing itself for floods in the next few days as water levels reached the critical mark. Authorities say the situation in Brandenburg will become serious by the weekend. Meanwhile emergency teams in Poland are attempting to shore up river banks as the country continues to suffer its worst floods for decades.
The first flood waters have now reached the German-Polish border in Ratzdorf and Eisenhuettenstadt, near the Oder river.
On Tuesday, water levels are expected to rise further in other regions where authorities have put into place a level-1 alert, the lowest warning level. In the coming days that flood warning is to increase to level-2 in Ratzdorf and Eisenhettenstadt.
By the end of the week experts are forecasting water levels to reach level-3 and will remain at this level for a number of days before receding.
Tornado death
A six-year-old girl was killed on Monday in the German state of Saxony when a tornado caused heavy damage to the town of Grossenhain. Trees were uprooted and one of them landed on a car with the girl inside. Police in Dresden said the girl sustained multiple injuries and died later in hospital.
Many Grossenhain residents were evacuated from their houses and taken to temporary shelter in schools and muncipal buildings.
Hail storms and torrential rain also caused damage to many buildings in the region, includings residential housing and a church. At least one warehouse collapsed.
If the bad weather continues the floods could continue for ten days or three weeks, according to thje regional environment authority. It all depends whether the flood peak of the rivers Warthe and Oder meet in the Polish town of Kostrzyn.
Polish flood disaster
At least 15 people have been killed in Poland in the worst floods to hit the country in over a decade. A protective barrier broke near the town of Plock on Sunday, allowing flood water into the region about 100 kilometres north-west of the capital Warsaw.
"The flood-water is making its way up the River Vistula to Warsaw. A crisis unit is deciding what steps to take to get the capital ready," the interior ministry said in a statement.
The Vistula's level risked reaching 780 centimetres, Warsaw's mayor Hanna Gronkiewicz Waltz told reporters.
"We're getting ready for it. We have 200,000 sandbags," she said.
Army officials say over 4,000 soldiers are taking part in rescue efforts around the country after Poland's largest river, the Vistula, broke its banks.
EU officials said France and Germany were sending high-power pumps to Poland. Russia has also promised to help Warsaw deal with the flood disaster.
nrt/dpa/AFP
Editor: Rob Turner