storm
Chancellor Scholz thanks helpers in flood areas
Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz in the city center of Verden/Aller. photo
© Philipp Schulze/dpa
Chancellor Olaf Scholz got an overview of the flood situation in Lower Saxony. The situation is sometimes tense and the water levels are high.
“I see that the willingness goes far beyond those who are now working professionally or voluntarily in the aid organizations. Local citizens are also helping in a concrete way and asking what they can do,” said Scholz. “That’s important. I think it shows that there is solidarity in our country and the willingness to stick together.” Scholz assured that the federal government would also support the affected states and municipalities “with its options” in dealing with the situation.
Scholz had previously gotten an impression of the flood situation in northern Lower Saxony by taking a sightseeing flight in a helicopter. He was accompanied by Lower Saxony’s Prime Minister Stephan Weil and the state’s Interior Minister, Daniela Behrens (both SPD).
The situation in some of the flood areas in Lower Saxony remains tense. According to the authorities, no worsening is expected at the moment – but river levels could rise locally again in the new year.
Short break in the rain over New Year’s Eve
The weather forecast is favorable. At the turn of the year there will be a short break in the rain with only local showers, said a meteorologist from the German Weather Service. However, the Lower Saxony State Office for Water Management, Coastal and Nature Conservation (NLWKN) announced in its situation report on Sunday morning that the precipitation was not relevant to floods.
According to the NLWKN, the flood peak, i.e. the highest water level during a flood, has been reached in Lower Saxony for the time being. However, there are still elevated water levels, especially in the lower reaches of rivers. It is not yet possible to speak of an easing of the flood situation.
In addition to Lower Saxony, the south of Saxony-Anhalt on the border with Thuringia and areas in North Rhine-Westphalia are also affected by floods. The Mansfeld-Südharz district in Saxony-Anhalt declared a disaster on Saturday.
In North Rhine-Westphalia there was a slight relaxation at the turn of the year. “Overall, the trend in water levels is declining,” said a spokesman for the North Rhine-Westphalia Ministry of the Environment when asked by the German Press Agency on Saturday. The water levels continued to fall on Sunday.
Visit of the Interior Minister planned
After Scholz, Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) will also visit the flood area in Lower Saxony on New Year’s Day. According to information from the German Press Agency, Faeser will meet with her Lower Saxony counterpart Behrens in the Oldenburg area on Monday afternoon with THW and federal police forces.
In view of the flooding in Lower Saxony, the city council is calling on the federal and state governments to significantly increase money for disaster protection. “The federal and state governments must significantly expand funding for flood and disaster protection again – permanently and not on an ad hoc basis through special programs. Too much has been saved in disaster protection in the past,” said Managing Director Helmut Dedy of the German Press Agency.
The SPD chairman Lars Klingbeil also spoke in the Berlin “Tagesspiegel” in principle in favor of “disaster protection and flood prevention being massively expanded”.