The catastrophic flooding in the west of the republic brings back memories of a similarly great disaster when the disaster came from the sea in Hamburg 59 years ago. At that time it was also the beginning of a great political career.
The small houses are under water up to the gutter. Sometimes people were able to save themselves on the roof. Many other houses, often just plain gazebos, have simply been swept away by the flood. If you have your apartment downstairs in one of the sturdy red brick apartment buildings, you’re in luck – neighbors on the upper floors take people in from below. The streets turn into rivers, the rushing water grabs stationary cars, pushes them into one another, wedges them with obstacles such as trees and lampposts, boards and rubbish build up. Sometimes people were able to save themselves on trees. Dead pets, cows and sheep drift by. Human corpses also swim between the houses, where streets ran until yesterday.