Lower Saxony & Bremen Floods keep Lower Saxony in suspense: dams full
December 26, 2023, 3:52 p.m
The floods are not allowing people in Lower Saxony to relax. Thousands of helpers worked over the holidays to support dikes with sandbags. The all-clear is not in sight. Overflowing reservoirs in the Harz are exacerbating the situation.
Hanover (dpa/lni) – Days of continuous rain caused a tense flood situation in large parts of Lower Saxony over the holidays. Numerous rivers overflowed their banks and transformed the surrounding area into lake landscapes. Dams broke in Northeim in southern Lower Saxony and Uplengen in the Leer district, and there were evacuations in Rinteln (Schaumburg district) and Sandkrug (Oldenburg district). Two dams in the Harz overflowed and the city of Braunschweig was preparing for a rise in water levels late on Tuesday evening. The fire brigade and technical relief organization were in constant use to secure the dams. The situation in Bremen was also tense at times.
Prime Minister Stephan Weil visited areas affected by flooding on Tuesday to get an idea of the situation. During a visit to Northeim, where a dam had burst, the SPD politician thanked the tens of thousands of helpers for their efforts over the holidays.
In the evening, Weil explained: “The flood situation in Lower Saxony is very tense across the country.” The Oker Dam in the Harz is already more than 100 percent full. More than twice as much water is released into the Oker via the overflow of the dam than on normal days. “However, there does not appear to be any threat of further deterioration, at least for the time being.” The situation in the Hildesheim district is also extremely tense. Sarstedt and Ruthe were particularly affected; the disaster was discovered there.
Despite the rain easing, the authorities do not expect any relief in the next few days. “In fact, the situation throughout Lower Saxony is very tense,” said the director of the Lower Saxony State Office for Water Management, Coastal and Nature Conservation, Anne Rickmeyer.
The German Weather Service lifted its severe weather warnings due to heavy rain on Tuesday. “But that doesn’t mean that we already have falling water levels everywhere,” said Rickmeyer. “For now, I’m glad that it won’t rain for two or three days.” But it will still take some time until the water that is now in the rivers flows into the North Sea. On Tuesday afternoon, 49 water levels in the country showed the warning level that warns of flooding of buildings.
Braunschweig prepared on Tuesday for a rise in the level of the Oker, which the city expected late in the evening. “The crisis team’s assessment of the situation continues to assume that the floods caused by the Oker and its tributaries will be limited to the known flood areas identified in the flood alarm plans,” the city of Braunschweig said early in the evening. People in the flood areas are called upon to take their own protective measures. “Sand has been piled up for collection at three places in the city. Citizens who need sandbags for flood protection can fill them themselves here.”
In the morning, the Oker dam in the Harz was full and the automatic emergency overflow was opened. The excess water poured into the river in a large fountain. Hundreds of onlookers watched the events at the dam on Tuesday. “This is an extraordinary situation,” said Andreas Lange, division manager for resources and authorized representative at the operator Harzwasserwerke.
The last time such a situation occurred was in 1994. 20 cubic meters of water per second now flow from the dam into the river. The Innerste Dam is also now full. Things look even better at the other four dams in the Harz. Some of the excess water from the Oker Dam can currently still be drained into the Grane Dam, which is not yet full.
NLWKN boss Rickmeyer also expects water levels to rise on the Mittelweser. The highest level has apparently been reached in Hannoversch Münden, where Fulda and Werra join to form the Weser. But as the river continues, it will take some time until this crest arrives. “We expect peak water levels in the next few days.” The city of Oldenburg also does not expect the highest level on the Hunte until the next few days.
According to state fire director Dieter Rohrberg, 100,000 firefighters are on permanent duty in Lower Saxony alone. There are also forces from the Technical Relief Agency and other aid organizations.
The Bremen fire department announced on Tuesday evening that due to high water levels, some paths, gardens and, in some cases, cellars throughout the city were under water. The fire and rescue control center is recording a very high volume of emergency calls. The situation in the Katrepel, Lehesterdeich and Timmersloh areas has worsened since early morning. In the area between the Wümme and Katrepeler Landstrasse, numerous properties are under water.
The Hanover region took another precautionary measure on Tuesday: the disaster control units in the region were subject to operational restrictions. “This makes it possible to mobilize rescue workers as quickly as the situation changes and to be able to react appropriately, for example in the event of possible evacuations,” the Hanover region announced in the evening. It also said: “We would like to point out very clearly that driving on closed roads is prohibited and will be consistently prosecuted by law or criminal law.”
Dams had already broken in Northeim in the south and Uplengen near Leer on Monday. Fortunately, in Northeim the water only flowed into an adjacent gravel pit, said state fire director Rohrberg. In Rinteln (Schamburg district), residents of a street near the city wall were evacuated on Tuesday because the cellars were in danger of filling up. In Sandkrug in the Oldenburg district, houses on two streets were evacuated on Monday evening.
2023-12-27 00:00:08
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