ReutersThe Czech Republic, Poland and Austria reported the highest death toll as floods hit central Europe over the weekend.
In the Czech Republic, one person drowned in a stream near the town of Brundal in the country’s northeast, and seven others are still missing.
Four people are known to have died in Poland, although an Interior Ministry spokesman said the exact cause of death had not yet been determined in at least one case.
In Austria, two people in their 70s and 80s died in the northeast of the country. One of them, a resident of the town of Höbersdorf, drowned when he tried to pump water out of his apartment, Austrian media reported.
Eight deaths were reported over the weekend in Poland, Romania and Austria, where a firefighter was killed during a flood rescue operation.
While conditions are stable in some parts of Central Europe, others face greater disruption and risk.
In Slovakia, the rising Danube River flooded the Old Town area of the capital Bratislava, with local media reporting that water levels had exceeded 9 m (30 ft) and were expected to rise further.
Good picturesHungary is expecting flooding in the coming days. Warnings are in effect along 500km (310 miles) of the Danube.
The river rises by a meter every 24 hours as Budapest’s mayor hands out a million sandbags to residents to protect them from floodwaters.
Roads across the river in the Hungarian capital will be closed from Monday evening, while some tram lines will not operate. Trains between Budapest and Vienna have also been cancelled.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said at X that he had postponed all his international commitments “due to severe weather and ongoing flooding in Hungary”.
The Czech Republic has had a lot of rain. In the northeastern town of Jesenik, 473mm (19in) of rain has fallen since Thursday morning – five times the average monthly rainfall.
In the Austrian city of St. Bolton, more rain fell in four days than in the entire wettest autumn on record in 1950.
President Carl Nehammer said the armed forces have been deployed to provide aid to storm-hit areas. Austria’s climate ministry said €300m (£253m) of rescue funding would be available.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said a billion zloty (£197m) would be allocated to flood victims. He added that Poland would also apply for EU relief funds.
On Monday, Poland declared a state of natural disaster, eased emergency response and freed up EU funds.
Villages and towns were submerged in eastern Romania. The mayor of Slobozia Gonacci, Emil Dragomir, told the media that the floods were devastating.
“If you were here, you would immediately cry because people are desperate, their whole life’s work is gone, there are people with the clothes they were wearing,” he said.
Thousands of people, including staff and patients, have been evacuated from a hospital in the Polish city of Nysa. In many parts of the country, roads have been severely affected and train services have also been suspended.
On Monday morning, the mayor of Paczków, in southwestern Poland, appealed to residents to evacuate after overflowing water in a nearby reservoir threatened the town.
However, in other parts of Poland, water levels are now receding, according to local authorities.
The mayor of the city of Klodzko, Michal Piszko, told Polish media that the water had receded and that the signs were now over for the worst.
Video footage from Monday morning showed that city center streets that flooded on Sunday were now free of water, although the footage also revealed the extent of the damage to buildings.
Where does Storm Boris go next?
More rain is expected throughout Monday and Tuesday in Austria, the Czech Republic and south-east Germany, where another 100mm is expected.
Although it may take days for the floodwaters to recede, weather in central Europe will improve to very dry conditions from mid-week.
However, Storm Boris is now moving further south into Italy, where it will intensify again and bring heavy rain. The Emilia-Romagna region will be worst hit, with 100-150mm of rain.
The rainfall recorded in Central Europe is caused by many factors, including climate change.
Different weather elements combined to form a “perfect storm” in which very cold air from the Arctic met warm air from the Mediterranean.
Atmospheric pressure pattern shows that storm Boris is stuck in one place for a long time.
A warmer atmosphere holds more moisture, leading to more intense rainfall, scientists say. Warmer oceans feed more evaporation, storm systems.
For every 1C rise in global average temperature, the atmosphere can sustain About 7% more moisture.
