Status: 07/22/2021 11:32 a.m.
Thunderstorms are difficult to predict, but there are signs that there could be new storms over the weekend in the flood regions in the west. The number of deaths from the flood disaster has now risen to 172.
In the flood areas in North Rhine-Westphalia, Rhineland-Palatinate and also in Saarland, the weather outlook is causing concern for the coming days. New thunderstorms threaten there at the weekend. When exactly and with what intensity, however, it is not yet possible to say. According to the German Meteorological Service, “thunderstorms with heavy rain are possible in the region on Saturday and Sunday”.
According to the DWD, Friday is likely to remain mostly dry. The first showers in the Eifel, which was particularly affected by the flood disaster, could then come on Saturday night.
Previous record values ”far exceeded”
Last week a storm with heavy rain triggered a devastating flood in parts of Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia. In some places more than 200 liters of rain per square meter were recorded within two days. These are quantities that otherwise tend to fall within two, three or four months in western Germany. According to the now published by the DWD climatological classification the previous record values were “far exceeded” at a number of measuring stations.
Even smaller amounts of new rain can become a problem, as the soil is so wet that it cannot absorb any more water. Streams can swell accordingly quickly.
“Unbelievably many” in one message chain
The President of the Federal Office for Disaster Protection, Armin Schuster, admitted mistakes in the recent flood disaster. “I can’t stand here when I see people’s suffering every day (…) and pretend that it went well. It didn’t go well,” said Schuster im ARD morning magazine.
“It did not go optimally, but when it comes to warning, there are an unbelievable number of people who are in a chain of reports,” Armin Schuster, Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief, on disaster control
Morning magazine, July 22, 2021
But when it came to warning, “an unbelievable number” played a role in a chain of reports. “My office has a lot of know-how and little responsibility. We only press the warning button in the event of war,” emphasized Schuster, with a view to the fact that the federal government is only responsible for civil protection in the event of a defense.
“Otherwise we make our system available to the federal states and municipalities and they use it. It works.” The question now is how the warning system can be improved, for example with more sirens and warnings via SMS.
Meanwhile 128 dead in Rhineland-Palatinate
The death toll found after the flood has continued to rise. According to Prime Minister Malu Dreyer, 128 dead have been registered in Rhineland-Palatinate alone, 155 people are still missing. According to the Interior Ministry, the number of deaths in North Rhine-Westphalia remained at 47.
This means that at least 172 people died in the flood in both federal states. So far, 31 fatalities have been confirmed in neighboring Belgium.