Heavy rainfall and flooding have been reported in parts of Germany and central Europe. Since last Thursday it has rained almost continuously. According to the German news agency, dpa, the city of Passau, among the worst hit places, has not seen water level this high in five centuries of recorded data. Passau, the “City of Three Rivers” is located in Bavaria, in the southeastern part of Germany where the Danube, Inn and Ilz Rivers come together.
Aerial view of the flooded city of PassauPhoto/dpa, Peter Kneffel
Other rivers have swollen to critical levels as well. Shipping on stretches of the Rhine, Main, and Neckar rivers had to be halted. Rail transportation between Munich and the Austrian city of Salzburg had to be suspended. Berlin’s Spree River is swollen but not considered critical.
Aside from Germany, hardest hit by the heavy rainfall and flooding were Austria, Switzerland, and the Czech Republic. The worst seems to be over. The Deutscher Wetterdienst (German weather service) predicts a decrease in precipitation for the remainder of the week (see www.dwd.de)
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Walled-In is my story of growing up in Berlin during the Cold War. Juxtaposing the events that engulfed Berlin during the Berlin Blockade, the Berlin Airlift, the Berlin Wall and Kennedy’s Berlin visit with the struggle against my equally insurmountable parental walls, Walled-In is about freedom vs. conformity, conflict vs. harmony, domination vs. submission, loyalty vs. betrayal.
Tags: flooding, heavy rain, Passau, shipping
