Question 1

How severe is the storm?

Accepted Answer

Days of torrential rain left swaths of Lower Austria submerged. Floodwater in the center of Klodzko, a Polish town on the Czech border, reached around 6 feet, while officials said the Elbe River was expected to reach 22 feet in Schöna at the German-Czech border, and 20 feet in Dresden, Germany, later on Wednesday. Residents in flood-hit towns including Krnov in the Czech Republic and Klodzko, Poland, were also warned against drinking tap water because of possible water contamination. During flooding, treatment plants can get overwhelmed to the point of releasing dirty water. There have been 21 dam breaks in the state of Lower Austria, deputy governor Stephan Pernkopf said Tuesday. Concerns remained high that more dams could burst, as the Red Cross set up emergency accommodation in the district of Tulln. Authorities in the eastern Romanian county of Galati, which has been worst hit, sent boats to rescue residents and ordered the national police to assist. Residents will also receive enough water and food for one week and can stay in temporary modular homes, officials said. In Hungary, Prime Minister Viktor Orban canceled all international engagements, including a European Parliament speech, as the capital Budapest braced for what its mayor described as the largest floods in a decade. In neighboring Austria, Chancellor Karl Nehammer paused campaigning for the Sept. 29 legislative election to focus on the response to floods. The government of the Czech Republic decided late Monday to deploy the military. Defense Minister Jana Cernochova wrote on X that up to 2,000 soldiers will support civil authorities until the end of October. Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk has said that would ask the European Union for financial aid, and his government announced a state of natural disaster for 30 days across several flood-affected areas. The snowfall was also unusually intense. For some areas of the Austrian Alps, it was the first time on record that snow accumulated in September. Austria’s Nehammer said over the weekend that almost everywhere in the country had been affected by heavy rainfall or snowfall. By Tuesday, Johanna Mikl-Leitner, state premier of Lower Austria, which was severely hit by the floods, said waters had receded slightly, but the situation remains tense, pointing to the risk of dam breaks and landslides.

Question 2

How many people have died?

Accepted Answer

At least 18 people have died — seven in Romania, four in Poland, five in Austria and three in the Czech Republic — since the rains began Friday, according to officials. Romania’s General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations confirmed the latest death toll on Monday. Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu said that more than 5,000 homes in Pechea, Galati County, alone were affected by the floods. “Nothing can ease the suffering of the people of Pechea,” Ciolacu wrote on Facebook. Emil Dragomir, mayor of Slobozia Conachi, another commune in Galati County, said 76 percent of houses there were damaged in the floods. In Austria, an 81-year-old woman was found dead in her flooded house in Würmla, Lower Austria, on Tuesday, raising the total death toll there to five. A firefighter died while working in the floods, Austrian Vice Chancellor Werner Kogler wrote Sunday on X. Austrian public broadcaster ORF reported Monday that two men aged 70 and 80 had also died in the floodwaters in their homes in the Lower Austria villages of Untergrafendorf and Höbersdorf, respectively.

Question 3

What’s the forecast for Boris?

Accepted Answer

Flood advisories remained in place across large parts of the Czech Republic and parts of Slovakia as of Tuesday morning, according to Meteoalarm, a weather tool created by the European Network of National Meteorological Services. The Danube river was continuing to rise, prompting cities including Budapest and the Slovakian capital Bratislava to shore up defenses. The Danube River in Budapest was expected to rise later this week to almost 28 feet, Reuters reported — nearly a foot from the record of 29.2 feet, set in 2013. Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony warned that the largest floods in a decade were expected to hit the city later this week, though no significant rainfall is expected, according to forecasts. The eastern German state of Saxony also watched as floodwaters from neighboring Czech Republic headed their way Tuesday. The water gauge in state capital Dresden was at 19 feet Tuesday morning, compared to the usual level of 4.7 feet. Heavy rainfall in southern Germany had also caused rising river levels in parts of Bavaria. Ian Livingston and Amar Nadhir contributed to this report

Death toll rises in European floods; more severe weather expected

At least 19 people have died in floods in central Europe, including in Romania, Poland, Austria and the Czech Republic, according to officials.