() – At least six people have died after some of the heaviest rain in years hit central and eastern Europe, causing widespread flooding and disruption.
A slow-moving low-pressure system dubbed Storm Boris dumped a month’s worth of rain on several historic European capitals, including Vienna, Bratislava and Prague. Heavy rain continued to hit the region until Sunday.
On Sunday, one person drowned in Klodzko County in southwestern Poland. Also on Sunday, a firefighter was killed in action in Austria, a spokesman for the Lower Austrian fire department confirmed to .
This comes after four people died in Romania, where heavy rains left hundreds stranded in flooded areas.
“The effects were most severe in seven localities,” Romanian Interior Minister Cătălin Predoiu told affiliate Antena 3. “They have already intervened there to save 95 people. Unfortunately, four people were found dead in their homes or yards.”
Rescue services have been launched in the worst-affected counties as authorities warn they have recorded the heaviest rainfall in 100 years in the past 24 hours.
Rivers have burst their banks in Poland and the Czech Republic. In southwestern Poland, 1,600 people were evacuated in Klodzko County when local rivers reached record water levels and burst their banks. Klodzko, a town of 25,000, was partially submerged under water on Sunday.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk told reporters on Sunday: “We have the first confirmed death by drowning, here in Klodzko County.”
“The situation remains very dramatic in many places,” he added. “Unfortunately, these situations are repeating themselves in many places… but some residents sometimes underestimate the level of threat and refuse to evacuate.”
Major flooding is expected in the Czech Republic, where authorities have ordered mandatory evacuations in some areas. Images released by the Fire Service and Rescue in the Czech Republic show flooded streets in the southern municipality of Benešově nad Černou, where two women who did not obey evacuation orders had to be rescued by boat.
In Germany, the southern and eastern states in particular are preparing for possible flooding. Flood warnings have been issued for rivers in the federal state of Saxony.
In neighbouring Austria, heavy rains have caused water levels to rise in several rivers and rescue services have been mobilised in some parts of the country. Many municipalities in Lower Austria have declared a state of emergency as heavy rain continued into Sunday.
A red alert, the highest level of warning, has been issued in parts of Poland, Germany, the Czech Republic, Austria and Slovakia. This alert level is associated with “severe weather phenomena” and “significant damage is likely,” according to the official. Meteoalarm .
meteorologists Taylor Ward, Allison Chinchar and Elliana Hebert contributed to this report.
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