Widespread Flooding Disrupts Cross-Border Transport in Germany

(Bloomberg) — Heavy rains in southern Germany and parts of Switzerland caused major disruptions to transport and communications, with thunderstorms set to intensify over the weekend.

Train connections between Bavaria’s capital of Munich, Zurich in Switzerland and Bregenz in Austria were cancelled on Saturday, with the outage expected to continue until Sunday, the train operator Deutsche Bahn said in a statement. 

Flood warnings have been issued for almost half of Germany, including in parts of the eastern states of Thuringia, Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt. 

For the Upper Danube River — a key shipping route — and several of its southern tributaries, high- or very-high water alerts are in place. 

A dam broke near Augsburg in Bavaria, while residents trapped in their houses in Fischach, southwest of Augsburg, were evacuated by helicopter, according to local media reports. Authorities started setting up an emergency shelter on Saturday afternoon. 

In Wiesensteig, in the state of Baden-Württemberg, around 2,100 citizens were ordered to boil tap water before drinking it after floodwaters had entered a water supply utility.

In Hesse’s Babenhausen, near the country’s financial hub of Frankfurt, a district authority asked residents to hang white sheets out of their windows in case of emergency after parts of the mobile phone network failed.

A reported height of 700 cm (276 inches) was exceeded on the Upper Rhine River on Saturday, with water levels set to rise “significantly” until Sunday afternoon, according to the flood forecasting center in Rhineland-Palatinate. That would likely mean shipping on a section of Europe’s important trade link could also be disrupted.

Floods and landslides caused by heavy rain have blocked several roads in Switzerland, according to the broadcaster SF.

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