Predicted permanent frost gives helpers in the flood areas hope for relief. However, the situation remains tense in some places.
Sangerhausen/Hannover – Hardly any rain, but frost and some snow: Due to a change in the weather, the situation in many flood areas in Germany eased somewhat over the weekend. In southern Saxony-Anhalt, where the Bundeswehr is helping to secure the dikes, the situation was “very stable” on Sunday afternoon, as a spokeswoman for the crisis team there said.
However, things remained critical in parts of Lower Saxony. Thousands of helpers were deployed in many places. There was good news for almost 100 residents of the community of Lilienthal near Bremen. After days of evacuation, they were allowed to return to their homes on Sunday, the community announced.
Water is still pressing on dikes in Lower Saxony
In Lower Saxony, 23 of the 97 water levels nationwide had still reached or exceeded the highest reporting level, as a spokesman for the Ministry of the Interior announced on Sunday. The water levels are mostly unchanged. In some places they are sinking slightly, but the drainage is slow and the water is still pressing on the dikes. “We need perseverance,” said the spokesman.
In the districts of Celle, Oldenburg, Emsland, Osterholz, Heidekreis and Verden, as well as in the city of Oldenburg, which were particularly affected by the flood, an “extraordinary event” is still considered. This means, among other things, that municipalities can more easily access auxiliary staff.
According to the Interior Ministry, thousands of helpers are still working in the flood areas between the Harz and the North Sea. However, there is currently no need for support from the Bundeswehr, which had prepared for a possible deployment on Friday. In the south of Lower Saxony, sandbags are being collected and transported away again, a spokesman reported.
Flood situation in Saxony-Anhalt stable
The situation in the flood area in the Mansfeld-Südharz district improved significantly on Sunday. “It is now very stable,” a spokeswoman for the crisis team in Sangerhausen told the German Press Agency. “The weather is finally playing into our hands.” On Sunday night, frost had set in and there was no rain in sight.
On Sunday, due to the conditions on site, the decision was made that the approximately 200 temporary and professional soldiers deployed would only work in daylight. According to its own information, the Bundeswehr decided this together with other forces. The conditions currently do not allow work before sunrise and after sunset, said a Bundeswehr spokeswoman. Significant wetting is visible on the dikes. The Bundeswehr has been deployed in the district since Friday. It is the first and so far only Bundeswehr deployment in the current flood situation.
Shortly before the end of the year, the Helme River overflowed its banks in places in the region in southern Saxony-Anhalt. As the situation worsened, the district declared a disaster on December 30, 2023.
Among other things, the inflow from the Thyra, which flows into the Helme near the dam from the Harz direction, decreased over the weekend, according to the flood forecast center in Magdeburg. According to the German Weather Service, very little precipitation is expected in the region in the coming days, and permanent frost is also expected in the coming days.
A change in the weather brings relaxation in many places
The weather is also changing in the rest of Germany: “The exceptionally mild westerly weather that has been going on for weeks, which has brought us lots of rain and floods, is now finally coming to an end,” said meteorologist Christian Herold from the German Weather Service in Offenbach. “The weather situation is fundamentally changing to winter.” Temperatures no longer rise above zero degrees during the day, and snow is expected, especially in the north and south.
According to a spokesman for the Ministry of the Environment, the situation in North Rhine-Westphalia is stable after the rains have stopped on the dikes and dams. “We have stagnating and predominantly falling water levels across the country,” said the spokesman. According to the ministry, only 37 of 104 measuring stations had one of the three flood warning levels in effect on Sunday morning. A day earlier on Saturday morning, this was still the case at 48 measuring stations.
In Hesse, all water levels have now fallen below level 2, as the Hessian State Office for Nature Conservation, Environment and Geology (HLNUG) announced. The water levels are expected to continue to fall over the next few days. Reporting level 1 means waters full to the brim, smaller banks are flooded. In Rhineland-Palatinate, too, the water levels on the Middle Rhine and Lower Rhine are constantly falling, according to the flood forecast center. According to the information, the water levels at the water levels below the Wesel are currently stagnating, but are expected to fall shortly. There is currently no longer any acute risk of flooding on the remaining rivers in Rhineland-Palatinate. Water levels are expected to continue to decline over the next week. dpa
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