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STORM

Heavy snow, avalance danger continues in southern Germany

The risk posed by heavy snow continued throughout the south on Monday, with Interior Minister Horst Seehofer pledging to visit the areas most affected in Bavaria.

Heavy snow, avalance danger continues in southern Germany
A Bundeswehr soldier frees a house from snow in Buchenhöhe in Berchtesgaden, where Seehofer will visit with emergency forces. Photo: DPA

Late Sunday evening, an avalanche buried parts of the federal highway 305 in the district of Berchtesgaden in south Bavaria. Nobody was injured, but the section remained closed.

In the Allgäu, a scenic southern region surrounded by Alps, the authorities closed the access road to the community of Balderschwang due to the danger of avalanches.

The entrance to the Riedbergpass in the Allgäu is closed off due to an avalanche danger. Photo: DPA

Federal Minister of the Interior Horst Seehofer, of the centre right Christian Socialists, will soon get a picture of the situation himself: On Sunday evening, he announced his plans to meet with federal emergency forces of the federal police and the technical relief organization in Berchtesgaden.

Talks are planned in Berchtesgaden and Neukirchen am Teisenberg, among other places in south Bavaria. His cabinet colleague and Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen, of the CSU's sister party the Christian Democrats, promised on Sunday to assist the districts affected by the snow chaos.

Snow continues in Upper Bavaria

In five Upper Bavarian districts; Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen, Traunstein, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Miesbach and Berchtesgaden, the disaster has been in effect for days – and it will probably continue for the time being.

At numerous schools in Upper and Lower Bavaria as well as in the Allgäu region, classes were cancelled on Monday because the authorities were unable to guarantee a safe route to school. In the districts Bad Tölz-Wolfratshausen and Oberallgäu as well as in the city of Kempten, no lessons will take place until Tuesday.

Parked cars in Munich sit between fallen snow from the previous days. Unlike other parts of Bavaria, no new snow, however, fell on Sunday night. Photo: DPA

Traffic jams due to snow

Snow and ice was also causing traffic obstructions at the start of the week in other parts of Germany. Heavy rain and gusts of wind caused an accident during the night in Hesse. Near Bad Karlshafen in the Kassel district, a tree crashed into a moving car on the B83. According to police, four passengers were slightly injured. Two of them were trapped in the car and had to be freed by the fire brigade.

In the north and central Hessen, police spoke of fallen trees, which in some cases blocked roads. In Wiesbaden, construction fences blew on roads. “Overall, the night was relatively quiet, however,” a police spokesperson told FOCUS Online.

Snow continues to fall south of the Main river, freezing on to wet road. It is still windy to stormy. In addition, gusts of wind up to 80 km/h are possible, reported FOCUS Online.

Flooding in Baden-Württemberg

Flooding is expected in parts of Baden-Württemberg on Monday. In the Black Forest, the Hohenlohe and the Swabian Alb, isolated floods are possible, the flood forecasting centre for Baden-Württemberg announced on Sunday.

Due to heavy rain, the Acher river on Monday morning had a high water level. Photo: DPA

On the lower Neckar river, flooding on Monday midday is expected to reach a level that occurs about every two years. The continuous rainfall could cause water levels to rise rapidly and sharply.

The floods in Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria, as well as the snowfall in the Alps, are expected to slowly decrease from Monday night until Tuesday. By Wednesday or Thursday, the German Weather Service expects temperatures to drop, with rain expected and possible thunderstorms on Thursday.

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WEATHER

More rain forecast as storms hit western Germany

Severe storms and heavy rain affected parts of Germany on Thursday, creating disruptions. More rain is forecast on Friday but weather warnings have been lifted.

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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