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Situation in flood areas also tense on New Year’s Eve
Despite water levels easing slightly, numerous streams and rivers in North Rhine-Westphalia continue to flood. photo
© Friso Gentsch/dpa
The turn of the year literally falls through the cracks for many emergency services in flood areas. So that they don’t get more work to do, the authorities have published an appeal.
According to information from the newspaper, Scholz wants to show those affected that the government is not leaving them alone in this difficult situation, it said on Saturday evening on the “Bild” portal. The exact time and place of the visit are still secret. There was no official confirmation on Sunday night either.
Parts of Lower Saxony, the south of Saxony-Anhalt on the border with Thuringia and areas in North Rhine-Westphalia are particularly affected by flooding. Recently there was a bit of an all-clear in some places. The Lower Saxony State Office for Water Management, Coastal Protection and Nature Conservation, for example, reported that several water levels had reached their peak and would fall again. According to the information, the water levels in the middle and lower reaches of the Aller, Leine and Oker would remain at the current level for the time being.
Lower Saxony’s Interior Minister Daniela Behrens (SPD) told “Spiegel”: “More rainfall has been announced, and there could also be a storm. Nevertheless, we currently do not expect that the announced rain will dramatically worsen the situation.” The DWD has forecast persistent and heavy rain in parts of Germany for Tuesday. There is great concern that the situation on the rivers could worsen again.
Called to refrain from New Year’s Eve firecrackers
For many emergency services there will probably be at least no big New Year’s Eve celebrations. In order to save them extra work, several cities in Lower Saxony recommended avoiding fireworks and firecrackers on New Year’s Eve, for example the city of Celle. The emergency services are already very busy with the flood. Environment Minister Christian Meyer (Greens) also recommended that New Year’s Eve firecrackers be avoided in areas affected by flooding.
In some cases, firecracker bans were also issued, such as in the municipality of Lilienthal in the Osterholz district near Bremen. The district also feared that there would be many onlookers in the flood area on New Year’s Eve. Behrens described onlookers and disaster tourists as annoying. “Many people travel specifically to see the masses of water. They ignore the barriers.” There have already been several cases in which the fire brigade had to rescue onlookers, said the Interior Minister.
Disaster in the Mansfeld-Südharz district
The emergency services are also busy in other parts of the country. The flood situation remains critical in several towns on the Helme River on the state border between Thuringia and Saxony-Anhalt. The Mansfeld-Südharz district declared a disaster on Saturday. According to the mayor of the Südharz municipality, Peter Kohl, collection points were set up in two gyms as a precaution on Saturday evening. Despite the declaration of a disaster, there is currently no change in practical work.
On the Elbe near Tangermünde in the north of Saxony-Anhalt, the authorities expected that the second of four alert levels would be exceeded on Saturday. In Saxony and North Rhine-Westphalia, the authorities had cautiously spoken of an easing of the situation.