A firefighter has died while trying to rescue residents trapped by “unprecedented” major flooding in southern Germany, following heavy rain which is expected to continue through today.
The man, 42, was in a rescue boat carrying four firefighters that capsized late yesterday.
His body was recovered early this morning, said a spokesperson for the Bavarian town of Pfaffenbachan der Ilm, around 50km north of Munich.
While municipalities had days to prepare for the flooding, rescue workers still had to evacuate hundreds of people as the water cut off some areas, authorities said.
Locals in the Bavarian village of Reichertshofen near Ingolstadt, north of Munich said they had never before seen such huge amounts of water.
Farmer Gerhard Bayerl said authorities had begun evacuating people after the water level rose by 20cm, or 7.8 inches “within 10 minutes”.
“We owe our thanks and respect to the rescue workers and helpers who are battling the consequences of the floods in many places,” Chancellor Olaf Scholz said.
Economy Minister and Vice Chancellor Robert Habeck pledged support for the affected regions during a visit and noted that climate change is causing more severe weather events.
“Natural disasters have always accompanied mankind. What we are seeing is that the frequency of these events is increasing significantly. Record floods occur every few years … record rainfall every few years,” Habeck, of the Greens Party, told broadcaster n-tv.
Parts of Europe were hit by major flooding in 2021 that killed nearly 200, with Germany bearing the brunt. The disaster was largely blamed on the consequences of climate change and prompted calls for stricter warning and safety measures.
