The German flood warning system leaves it to local authorities to decide what action to take, on the principle that they have the best information about the local area and what people or property are in the path of a flowing river.
In some cases it appears that the warning was issued in time. In the town of Wuppertal, located in a valley divided by the Wupper River, a crisis committee comprising police, fire departments and city officials used social media to urge people to stay at home.
Early on Thursday, shortly after midnight, they sounded a warning siren, which sounds like the kind used during World War II, to prompt residents to go to higher floors or evacuate when water rises. alerts to.
Martina Ackermann, a spokeswoman for the city, said there was property damage to Wuppertal, such as a flood in the orchestra pit of the local opera house, but there were no deaths.
But elsewhere the warning came too late.
In neighboring Rhineland-Palatinate’s Ahrweiler district, regional authorities issued their first warnings to residents living near the river’s bank as it reached a record level of 3 meters, or about 10 feet. It was not until three hours later, as the waters rose past flood records, that a state of emergency was declared.
By that time, many people had fled to the upper levels of their homes, but those who could not move fast died, as did the 12 disabled residents of a care home in Sinjig, who needed help from their land. was not alerted in time. -Floor rooms before the water rises.
“The warning has come,” said Mr. Kirsch of the German Weather Service. “But the question is, why was the evacuation not done quickly? It’s something we have to think about.”
Melissa Eddy reported from Berlin, Jack Ewing from Frankfurt, Megan Specia from London and Steven Erlanger from Mush, Germany.