Storm Zoltan aftermath and weather warnings in Northern Germany

2023-12-25 06:54:04

As of: December 25, 2023 7:43 a.m

After storm Zoltan, the weather situation in the north is now largely calming down. Official warnings are in effect for several districts in Lower Saxony due to rising water levels and there is a storm surge warning for the Weser and the North Sea coast.

According to the German Weather Service (DWD), mild temperatures will also dominate the weather after Christmas Eve. It will also remain stormy, especially on the coasts. Today the morning flood and the afternoon flood will occur one to one and a half meters higher than the mean flood on the German North Sea coast and will occur one and a half to two meters higher than the mean flood in the Weser and Elbe areas. A storm surge warning from the Federal Maritime and Hydrographic Agency is in effect until the afternoon.

Today there may be longer periods of relaxation in Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania, including sunshine. The wind is coming back to life, especially in Lower Saxony. There should also be heavy rain again by Tuesday night at the latest.

Storm warning for the Harz – water levels are rising

One still applies to the Harz storm warning: Heavy, continuous rain can occur here with precipitation amounts of up to 90 liters per square meter. The flood situation has worsened further in parts of Lower Saxony. It is not yet possible to predict when the peak will be reached.

People in the affected areas are asked to inform themselves about the current situation and to secure their property and rooms near water. Keep your distance from flowing water!

In addition: The Hamburg environmental authority announced that caution should still be exercised when entering forests and parks in the coming days. Branches and trees could fall.

Rail: High capacity utilization, train connection canceled

Deutsche Bahn (DB) says it has largely repaired the storm damage. “Regional traffic is running as scheduled again and long-distance traffic is returning to normal,” said a railway spokesman on Saturday morning. The railway had canceled the train connection for tickets valid up to and including Saturday.

Further information

Traffic jams, construction sites and danger warnings: current traffic reports for Hamburg, Lower Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. more

Ferry traffic on the North and Baltic Seas has largely normalized

On Friday, ferry traffic on the North and Baltic Seas was still severely restricted in some cases. Many restrictions have now been lifted, including on connections between Rostock and Denmark and Sweden. However, passengers have to be prepared for bumpy crossings, as a port spokesman in Rostock said.

Ferries to and from the East Frisian island of Wangerooge should also mostly run according to schedule after traffic had to be completely stopped on Friday. However, according to shipping company information, anyone who wants to go to Langeoog has had to reckon with cancellations and delays due to weather.

Further information

5 Min

Hurricane-like gusts, fallen trees and a lot of precipitation caused disruptions. There were also problems on the streets. 5 mins

2 Min

Hurricane Zoltan caused a lot of work for the rescue workers in the country and also affected rail and ferry traffic on Friday. 2 mins

2 Min

The fire brigades mainly had to deal with fallen trees. There were disruptions to rail traffic. 2 mins

3 Min

The fire brigade was deployed more than 200 times because of the storm. Many Christmas vacationers were stranded at the train station. 3 mins

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