The floods in January also came dangerously close to the Heldenbergen district of Nidderau. archive
© mike bender
It was only a few months ago that the old town of Büdingen was under water, the Nidderauen were flooded, and the levels in Kinzig and Main rose rapidly. The pictures that are now going around the world from North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate clearly show what storms and rain can do.
Main-Kinzig-Kreis – How is flood protection in the Main-Kinzig-Kreis? Are the responsible authorities prepared for heavy rain, rising water levels, floods? We wanted to know and asked the district and the responsible regional council (RP) Darmstadt.
With the Nidder, the Kinzig, the Main, but also main backwaters such as the Salz or the Bracht, there is a whole series of rivers between the Maintal and Schlüchtern that can grow vigorously in the event of heavy rain events. The past winter months have shown that. Flood protection is therefore a fixed focus of the lower disaster control authority in the Main-Kinzig district, this informs our newspaper when asked.
264 warning siren locations in the district
The circle promotes the use of warning apps, especially Katwarn. The population is quickly warned about this. Around 62,000 users are currently registered who share their warnings with family and friends. It can be assumed that by rapidly disseminating and sharing warning messages, at least 200,000 citizens could be reached in a short period of time. Despite all the digitization, as the events of the past few days would have shown, older people must also be kept in mind. For them it needs the classic alarm ways, so and to that extent also the warning siren. There are 264 warning siren locations in the district. They are checked independently by the municipalities, with most cities and municipalities having a fixed inspection cycle: monthly, quarterly or semi-annually. Apart from that, warnings would also be given early on via the radio in the event of storms, according to the district.
The lower disaster control authority assesses the situation again and again after current events. In addition to personnel, organizational matters and with regard to vehicles and equipment, there is another topic in this context, especially in the Main-Kinzig district: the construction of flood retention basins. Nothing has changed in the assessment for the district: flood retention basins are needed in the main backwaters such as the Salz and Bracht. This especially as a supplement to the dam, which has already done great service for the Kinzig valley over the past four decades. In addition, according to the district, there is also the goal of building a retention basin on the Fallbach in front of Erlensee.
Still no permit for retention basins
The current status is that in Bad Soden an der Salz the further implementation is slowed down by the known concerns of the regional council because an adjacent slope could slide. Although this was already denied by a specialist office in 2014, the geological measurements of the following years did not show a different picture. Nevertheless, the project is dragging on and, even in the best case, could not be completed until 2028.
The regional council says that any slope protection measures have not yet been clarified. In this respect, there is still no approval. Experience in the current flood area has shown how important it is to “carefully examine the risk of landslides and draw the right conclusions from them. This is technically very complex and demanding, ”said RP spokesman Christoph Süß.
Proud: “Should do everything possible to prevent this in our region”
A retention basin in Weilers an der Bracht could be a little faster. Here, too, some concerns had to be cleared up by the licensing authority in recent years. At least the planning approval procedure could be initiated here this year. Completion would not be expected until 2027, according to the district. So-called scoping was recently carried out, says RP spokesman Suess. This means that the scope of the necessary studies on environmental impact has been determined. The water association Kinzig could then work out the plan approval application on the basis of these investigations and submit it to the RP.
“The flood pictures from the last few days have certainly not left any of us indifferent. Those were dramatic moments, for people traumatic experiences. Wherever it is in our power, we should do everything we can to prevent that in our region. We know the scenarios and know that hundreds or even thousands of people in the Kinzig valley would be threatened with their belongings, ”Thorsten Stolz explains when our newspaper asked.
Planning duration of more than 20 years is unacceptable
Flood protection is of course always more than the issue of flood retention basins. “That also includes personnel, equipment, vehicles, emergency supplies, cooperation. But the retention basins are a central issue for us because we could significantly increase the protection for the localities in the Spessart, Vogelsberg and further along Kinzig and Main. ”Unfortunately, the Main-Kinzig district repeatedly hits with the approval authorities Limits.
Stolz: “I very much hope that the experiences from this terrible event in West Germany will lead to more attention being paid to topics like ours. It is downright annoying that planning as for a green basin takes over 20 years, but the risk of such a catastrophic event has increased enormously. “
By Yvonne Backhaus-Arnold
Sandbags for protection: They were last used in Langenselbold at the beginning of February. archive
© Axel häsler
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ICE line and flood protection
Flood protection also comes up again and again when it comes to Deutsche Bahn’s new ICE line. Most recently, the Main-Kinzig district protested vehemently for and with the Kinzig water association when an expansion variant by means of a bridge was supposed to lead over the Kinzig reservoir in Ahl. This would have meant drilling on the lake bed at a depth of around 60 meters, with unforeseeable consequences for the soil density, as a report has shown. The dam system and the soil layers threatened to become unstable as a result. The protest was successful at the point: The consideration in the so-called variant IV is off the table, according to which the reservoir would now be bypassed to the south. However, plans for a bridge structure on the area that would be required for a retention basin near Weilers are still up-to-date, with the same reservations on the part of the water board (variant VII). This examination and discussion has not yet been concluded. The objections from the Main-Kinzig district are known to the relevant authorities. bac
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