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Heavy rain hits Bavaria and Lower Saxony

Violent storms have flooded swathes of Lower Saxony and Bavaria, filling streets and basements with water and leaving authorities struggling to cope.

Published: 30 June 2011 16:03 CEST

Heavy rain hits Bavaria and Lower Saxony

Photo: DPA

Southern Bavaria around Munich was particularly hard hit, with police and fire fighters being called out more than 170 times to deal with flooded cellars and garages. Nobody was injured, despite the chaos.

Water washed away roads and sidewalks throughout the region, sending local officials scrambling to respond.

“The storm is the worst in recent years,” said Friedhelm Liwack, from Auetal, in Lower Saxony.

By Thursday afternoon, the situation had calmed, though there was a considerable mess to clean up.

Click here for The Local’s weather forecast.

At one Munich shopping centre, water was one metre deep in places. Twenty shops remained closed. Authorities pumped water from a city centre hotel and the city museum. The chaos caused traffic jams on water-filled roads.

The storm started about 5 am with thunder and lightning. At times, 52 litres of rain fell per square metre each hour, according to the German Weather Service (DWD).

The DWD predicted that the worst of the storms was over, though it predicted cool and soggy weather throughout Germany for the rest of the week. Thunderstorms are expected to break out from time to time.

DPA/The Local/mdm

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More rain forecast as storms hit western Germany

Major storms hit western Germany on Thursday, causing travel disruption and flooding.

In parts of Baden-Württemberg, streets were flooded and rivers swelled. Bisingen, southwest of Tübingen, was particularly hard hit, with cellars and streets plunged under water.

Police said there was also traffic disruption. In Baden-Württemberg’s state capital Stuttgart, severe storms and lightning caused issues and some roads were closed.

A lightning strike in the Sigmaringen area resulted in a broken signal box on the railway line. According to Deutsche Bahn, no train journeys were possible in the region in the early evening with several delays and cancellations.

Other states were also affected.

There were around 300 relief operations in the Ahrweiler district in Rhineland-Palatinate, which was hit by the 2021 deadly flood disaster.

Police said no-on was injured, although basements and streets were flooded. The water levels of the Ahr were being closely monitored.

Emergency services in Bisingen on Thursday.

Emergency services in Bisingen on Thursday. Photo: picture alliance/dpa | Silas Stein

In Trier, too, streets were flooded after heavy rain and there were hailstorms. The Koblenz police headquarters reported fallen trees. Significant property damage due to full cellars and flooded streets was also reported in some areas.

Heavy showers also fell in Hesse, accompanied by thunder storms. In Frankfurt, according to the fire department, the heavy rain caused water to enter the Bethanien Hospital and even reach the intensive care unit of the clinic.

“We were able to contain the damage relatively quickly and prevent it from spreading,” said fire department spokesman Thorben Schemmel, adding that no patients were affected.

In Rhineland-Palatinate, the Eifel region was particularly affected, with reports of flooded streets after heavy rain and hailstorms.

North Rhine-Westphalia also saw storms late in the afternoon on Thursday.

The German Weather Service (DWD) said it expected some heavy rain and hail in parts of the country on Friday – particularly in the west – and at the weekend but warnings of severe weather have been lifted.

The DWD said there could still be one or two strong thunderstorms in the northeast on Friday. However, it will be a significantly quieter day compared to Thursday. Temperatures of up to 25C can be expected.

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