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Hurricane force storm brings flood threat to north Germany

DPA/The Local
DPA/The Local - [email protected]
Hurricane force storm brings flood threat to north Germany
Walkers at the Baltic coast town of Graal-Müritz. Photo: DPA

On Wednesday the north of Germany is set to be hit by torrential rain and hurricane force winds, as the low pressure "Axel" moves in.

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The first sign of troubles to come will be winds reaching up to 110 km/h blowing across the north of the country.

The weathermen are also warning of the possibility of flooding on the Baltic Sea coast on Wednesday evening.

The government’s maritime office (BSH) said that sea levels could rise to 1.50 metres above normal, or higher.

Ines Perlet from the BSH said that if water levels rise over 1.50 metres above normal, serious flooding would ensue due to the fact that sea levels in the Baltic are already 30cm to 40cm higher than average.

Also on the North Sea, coastal tides are set to be unusually high. At the mouth of the River Elbe, tides will be 1.50 metres higher than normal on Wednesday morning.

Source: DWD

“Some people might ask themselves why moderate winds could bring about such high water levels,” said Jürgen Holfort from the BSH, explaining that even a mild storm could cause flooding in the current conditions.

The last time there was extensive flooding on the Baltic Sea coast was on November 1st 2006. Before that there was severe flooding in the winter of 2002.

The low pressure coming in from the north is also set to bring heavy snowfall to Germany’s mountainous regions. The Ore Mountains in eastern central Germany could be covered by 30cm of fresh powder on Wednesday.

The German Weather Service (DWD) is also predicting further snowfall across the east and south of the country on Wednesday, with Dresden, Munich and Stuttgart all set to be blanketed in more of the white stuff.

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