We are experiencing difficult and dramatic hours in Lower Austria. For many people in Lower Austria these will probably be the most difficult hours of their lives,
There's no reason to wait,
We have to focus on saving lives,
The water came into the house, it destroyed the walls, everything,
It took the chickens, the rabbits, everything. It took the oven, the washing machine, the refrigerator. I have nothing left,
According to forecasts, one of the biggest floods of the past years is approaching Budapest but we are prepared to tackle it,
What you see here is worse than in 1997 and I don’t know what will happen because my house is under water, and I don’t know if I will even return to it,
The situation is very dramatic,
Unfortunately a firefighter has died while responding to the flooding,
We have the first confirmed death by drowning, in the Klodzko region" on the Polish-Czech border
This is a catastrophe of epic proportions.
We are again facing the effects of climate change, which are increasingly present on the European continent, with dramatic consequences,
The ground is now saturated so all the rainwater is going to stay on the surface,
Water is the most powerful force of nature. Everyone is scared,
This is the second time in my life that I've seen such a phenomenon. It's a nightmare for the people who live here,
A warmer atmosphere heated by fossil fuel emissions can hold more moisture, leading to heavier downpours. Weather station data also indicates that bursts of September rainfall have become heavier in Germany, Poland, Austria, Czechia, Hungary and Slovakia since 1950,
The coming hours will be the moment of truth for our flood protection service and a massive test of endurance for our emergency services and fellow citizens,
We are facing a critical night, full mobilisation is required,
It’s clear that even highly developed countries like Germany are not safe from climate change. As long as the world burns oil, gas and coal, heavy rainfall and other weather extremes will intensify, making our planet a more dangerous and expensive place to live,