It caused about 168 deaths and hundreds of missing and injured
Collapsed bridges, streets and squares submerged in water as if they were a river, damaged houses and homes with water flowing in and out, smashed cars, uprooted trees, thousands of people without electricity and clean water.. That is the summary of the current scene in Germany and Western Europe, where the region fell prey. Unprecedented and uncommon during this period of the year.
More than 168 people were killed, and hundreds of missing and injured are the result of the massive floods that hit Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands as a result of Storm Burnet, and in Germany, about 141 people died in the floods in the worst natural disaster in the country in more than half a century. Hundreds are still missing and communications are still cut off in some places, while the death toll in Belgium has risen to 27, according to the National Crisis Center, which coordinates relief efforts, as quoted by news agencies.
Not only did the devastating floods claim lives, but also exposed the infrastructure network in Western Europe, after it fell under the blows of roaring flood waters, and left thousands without clean drinking water, electricity, and communications, unable with the fall of bridges and the collapse of roads to leave their places, or to seek help. .
Unfamiliar phenomenon
Although it is normal for rain to fall in Germany at this time of the year, the exceptional rate of precipitation was not taken into account, and unusual, according to the German “Deutsche Welle” agency, which put the issue of climate change in the dock.
A spokesman for the Ruhr Association says that the amount of water that flowed Thursday afternoon in the “Hattingen” region reached 1,450 cubic meters per second, 20 times the usual rate in these floods over a long period. Pointing out that a flood of this amount has not occurred since at least 1960.
While Ulrich Windau from the flood warning service of the government of the district “Arnsberg” says: “We have water levels in the Ruhr area that are more than one meter than it appeared so far,” noting that the level reached a new height of 7.21 meters, and flood values were recorded in the area Hattingen has never been recorded before.
Climate change in the dock
The unprecedented and unfamiliar wave of floods prompted many to question the cause, while fingers were pointed at global warming and climate change. “The air masses loaded with a large proportion of water remained in place for four days due to the low temperatures,” Jean Guzel, a climate scientist and former vice-president of the United Nations Climate Panel, told AFP. The result was: heavy rain, between July 14 and 15, whose level reached between “100 and 150 millimeters”, or the equivalent of two months of rain, according to the World Meteorological Organization.
While Kai Schrotter, a water resource scientist, believes that “at the moment, we cannot say for sure that this event is linked to climate change,” but he adds that these extreme weather events are becoming more frequent due to rising temperatures. As the planet’s temperature increases, water evaporates from oceans and rivers, causing more water to enter the atmosphere.”
According to Johannes Coase, a meteorologist at the German University of Leipzig, this weather pattern with different precipitation patterns will gradually become the normal situation, as quoted by German media.
A bleak future for humanity
What is happening in Germany and Western Europe, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction warned in advance, noting that climate change caused 6,700 natural disasters, including floods, storms, droughts, and forest fires that occurred during the period from 2000 to 2019.
He urged the “office” to build flood-resistant buildings, noting that it is a “priority”; Given that floods have affected 1.65 billion people since the turn of the millennium, more than any other type of natural disaster.
“If this level of growth in extreme weather events continues over the next 20 years, the future for humanity already looks very bleak,” said Deparati Guha Sabi, head of the Center for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters at the University of Louvain in Belgium. (Video)
Video: “Floods of Death” sweep Germany and Western Europe, and the infrastructure is collapsing… What is the reason?
Yasser Najdi
already
2021-07-18
Collapsed bridges, streets and squares submerged in water as if they were a river, damaged houses and homes with water flowing in and out, smashed cars, uprooted trees, thousands of people without electricity and clean water.. That is the summary of the current scene in Germany and Western Europe, where the region fell prey. Unprecedented and uncommon during this period of the year.
More than 168 people were killed, and hundreds of missing and injured are the result of the massive floods that hit Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands as a result of Storm Burnet, and in Germany, about 141 people died in the floods in the worst natural disaster in the country in more than half a century. Hundreds are still missing and communications are still cut off in some places, while the death toll in Belgium has risen to 27, according to the National Crisis Center, which coordinates relief efforts, as quoted by news agencies.
Not only did the devastating floods claim lives, but also exposed the infrastructure network in Western Europe, after it fell under the blows of roaring flood waters, and left thousands without clean drinking water, electricity, and communications, unable with the fall of bridges and the collapse of roads to leave their places, or to seek help. .
Unfamiliar phenomenon
Although it is normal for rain to fall in Germany at this time of the year, the exceptional rate of precipitation was not taken into account, and unusual, according to the German “Deutsche Welle” agency, which put the issue of climate change in the dock.
A spokesman for the Ruhr Association says that the amount of water that flowed Thursday afternoon in the “Hattingen” region reached 1,450 cubic meters per second, 20 times the usual rate in these floods over a long period. Pointing out that a flood of this amount has not occurred since at least 1960.
While Ulrich Windau from the flood warning service of the government of the district “Arnsberg” says: “We have water levels in the Ruhr area that are more than one meter than it appeared so far,” noting that the level reached a new height of 7.21 meters, and flood values were recorded in the area Hattingen has never been recorded before.
Climate change in the dock
The unprecedented and unfamiliar wave of floods prompted many to question the cause, while fingers were pointed at global warming and climate change. “The air masses loaded with a large proportion of water remained in place for four days due to the low temperatures,” Jean Guzel, a climate scientist and former vice-president of the United Nations Climate Panel, told AFP. The result: heavy rain, between July 14 and 15, amounting to between “100 and 150 millimeters”, or the equivalent of two months of rain, according to the World Meteorological Organization.
While Kai Schrotter, a water resource scientist, believes that “at the moment, we cannot say for sure that this event is linked to climate change,” but he adds that these extreme weather events are becoming more frequent due to rising temperatures. As the planet’s temperature increases, water evaporates from oceans and rivers, causing more water to enter the atmosphere.”
According to Johannes Coase, a meteorologist at the German University of Leipzig, this weather pattern with different precipitation patterns will gradually become the normal situation, as quoted by German media.
A bleak future for humanity
What is happening in Germany and Western Europe, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction warned in advance, noting that climate change caused 6,700 natural disasters, including floods, storms, droughts, and forest fires that occurred during the period from 2000 to 2019.
He urged the “office” to build flood-resistant buildings, noting that it is a “priority”; Given that floods have affected 1.65 billion people since the turn of the millennium, more than any other type of natural disaster.
“If this level of growth in extreme weather events continues over the next 20 years, the future for humanity already looks very bleak,” said Deparati Guha Sabi, head of the Center for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters at the University of Louvain in Belgium. (Video)
18 July 2021 – 8 Dhu al-Hijjah 1442
01:47 AM
It caused about 168 deaths and hundreds of missing and injured
Collapsed bridges, streets and squares submerged in water as if they were a river, damaged houses and homes with water flowing in and out, smashed cars, uprooted trees, thousands of people without electricity and clean water.. That is the summary of the current scene in Germany and Western Europe, where the region fell prey. Unprecedented and uncommon during this period of the year.
More than 168 people were killed, and hundreds of missing and injured are the result of the massive floods that hit Germany, Belgium and the Netherlands as a result of Storm Burnet, and in Germany, about 141 people died in the floods in the worst natural disaster in the country in more than half a century. Hundreds are still missing and communications are still cut off in some places, while the death toll in Belgium has risen to 27, according to the National Crisis Center, which coordinates relief efforts, as quoted by news agencies.
Not only did the devastating floods claim lives, but also exposed the infrastructure network in Western Europe, after it fell under the blows of roaring flood waters, and left thousands without clean drinking water, electricity, and communications, unable with the fall of bridges and the collapse of roads to leave their places, or to seek help. .
Unfamiliar phenomenon
Although it is normal for rain to fall in Germany at this time of the year, the exceptional rate of precipitation was not taken into account, and unusual, according to the German “Deutsche Welle” agency, which put the issue of climate change in the dock.
A spokesman for the Ruhr Association says that the amount of water that flowed Thursday afternoon in the “Hattingen” region reached 1,450 cubic meters per second, 20 times the usual rate in these floods over a long period. Pointing out that a flood of this amount has not occurred since at least 1960.
While Ulrich Windau from the flood warning service of the government of the district “Arnsberg” says: “We have water levels in the Ruhr area that are more than one meter than it appeared so far,” noting that the level reached a new height of 7.21 meters, and flood values were recorded in the area Hattingen has never been recorded before.
Climate change in the dock
The unprecedented and unfamiliar wave of floods prompted many to question the cause, while fingers were pointed at global warming and climate change. “The air masses loaded with a large proportion of water remained in place for four days due to the low temperatures,” Jean Guzel, a climate scientist and former vice-president of the United Nations Climate Panel, told AFP. The result: heavy rain, between July 14 and 15, amounting to between “100 and 150 millimeters”, or the equivalent of two months of rain, according to the World Meteorological Organization.
While Kai Schrotter, a water resource scientist, believes that “at the moment, we cannot say with certainty that this event is linked to climate change,” but he adds that these extreme weather events are becoming more frequent due to rising temperatures. As the global temperature increases, water evaporates from oceans and rivers, causing more water to enter the atmosphere.
According to Johannes Coase, a meteorologist at the German University of Leipzig, this weather pattern with different precipitation patterns will gradually become the normal situation, as quoted by German media.
A bleak future for humanity
What is happening in Germany and Western Europe, the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction warned in advance, noting that climate change caused 6,700 natural disasters, including floods, storms, droughts, and forest fires that occurred during the period from 2000 to 2019.
He urged the “office” to build flood-resistant buildings, noting that it is a “priority”; Given that floods have affected 1.65 billion people since the turn of the millennium, more than any other type of natural disaster.
“If this level of growth in extreme weather events continues over the next 20 years, the future for humanity already looks very bleak,” said Deparati Guha Sabi, head of the Center for Research on the Epidemiology of Disasters at the University of Louvain in Belgium. (Video)