2024 European floods

It has been suggested that this article should be split into a new article titled Storm Boris. (discuss) (September 2024)

2024 European floods

Significant flooding in Kłodzko, Poland (September 2024)
Date	May 2024-ongoing
Location	Poland, Germany, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Romania, Spain, France, Moldova, Italy, and Switzerland
Cause	Heavy rainfall
Deaths	52+ (3 indirectly)
Missing	10
Property damage	€2.2 billion (Germany)
Displaced	3,000+ (Germany)

In May, June and September (Storm Boris) 2024, several European countries were affected by severe floods caused by prolonged heavy rains. Several were catastrophic, causing deaths and widespread damage due to overflowing river basins and landslides. Countries affected included Austria,^[1] the Czech Republic,^[2] France,^[3] Germany,^[4] Hungary,^[5] Italy, Poland,^[6] Slovakia,^[7] Spain,^[8] and Switzerland.^[9]

Concurrently with flooding in Germany in early June, rising river levels on the Danube River reached 6.86 meters on the morning of 4 June, causing it to burst its banks in Linz, submerging areas close to the river. All river traffic along the Danube in the Lower Austria area was halted.^[1]

The flooding caused significant disruptions to the 2024 European Parliament elections, particularly in the province of Styria. The heavy rainfall rendered several polling stations in Deutschfeistritz, Hartberg-Fürstenfeld District, and Graz inaccessible or destroyed, necessitating rapid responses from local authorities to ensure that voters could still participate in the election process. In addition, The Übelbach river burst its banks due to the intense rainfall, causing mudslides that destroyed houses and washed away cars in Übelbach.^[10]

According to Croatian authorities, the Danube is expected to crest on the Croatia–Serbia border around the weekend of 21–22 September.^[11]

On 13–14 September, the low brought a temperature drop of up to 20 °C (36 °F) to Croatia, causing an unseasonable snowfall in the mountains.^[12]

The 2024 floods in the Czech Republic began on 13 September after heavy raining. Over 200 rivers were reported to spill over their banks as of 15 September. The most critical situation was in North Moravia, especially in the region of Jeseníky mountains, followed by North-East Moravia where thousands of people had to be evacuated. Jeseník and Opava were among the worst hit places where a few houses were destroyed by the overflown river. The evacuation operation there started already on the night of 14/15 September in the major residential area of Kateřinky. The biggest city hit by the floods was Ostrava. Only some parts of the city, however, were hit. There is an ongoing threat in handful of places in the South Bohemian Region. For the whole country, four people are reported missing, thousands were displaced and around 250 thousand left without electricity. Several roads and railroads were closed and water also leaked into 1 station of Prague Metro, but it remained operational.

On 15 September, Martin Kupka, the Czech transport minister, announced that the railway operation around Ostrava region, one of the major regions in the country, will remain suspended for at least a week to eliminate the damage caused by heavy rain and following floods.

On 14th november 5 people dissapeared in the water, 4 of them drove their car into a river in Lipová-Lázně, one was found alive. And one fell into a usually small and calm creek, while trying to clear driftwood off of a bridge in Jankovice (Uherské Hradiště District). On 15 and 16 September, four people died in the Moravian-Silesian Region. The first person was declared dead on 15 September in the Krasovice river. On 16 September, two people in Krnov and one in a flooded apartment were found dead.^[13]

In 8–9 June, heavy rains caused flooding and mudslides across Southern France in Eauze, Montréal, and Fourcès in Gers. The flooding required over 100 fire brigade interventions.^[3]

On 29 June 2024, three people in their 70's and 80's died in Aube after the car they were traveling in was crushed by a fallen tree during intensive storms, heavy rainfall, and strong winds, with a fourth passenger requiring critical care.^[14]

Flooding in Germany caused at least nine deaths, insured property damage of €2.2 billion, and over 3,000 displaced individuals.^{[15][16][17][18][19]}

In May 2024, over 100 liters of rain per square meter came down in less than 24 hours over Saarland. A woman in Saarbrücken was injured during an evacuation and later died, while a Red Cross worker died following a rescue operation from heart failure.^[20]

In June 2024, significant flooding struck Southern Germany, striking the most in Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria. Dozens of villages had to be evacuated across Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria due to the straining and failure of several dams and dykes caused by the persistent heavy rainfall.^[21] Among the rivers whose water levels significantly rose include the Danube, the Isar, the Zusam, the Weilach, the Ilm, the Paar, the Schmutter,^[22] the Roth, and the Leibi.^[23] Many places had more rainfall in 24 hours than their whole monthly average, and in many areas, the water reached levels that were present only "once in a century" according to the Bavarian Flood Information Service.^[4]

An inflatable rescue raft containing four firefighters capsized while evacuating citizens in Pfaffenhofen from floodwaters from the overflowing Ilm River, resulting in the death of one firefighter.^[24] Another firefighter was missing, as well as a woman in Schrobenhausen which was later found dead. Carriages of a train were derailed by a landslide caused by the heavy raining near Schwaebisch Gmund. None of the 185 passengers were injured.^[25]

On 4 June, a 57-year-old woman lost control with her car on a flooded road. She was later found dead.^[17] The Falkenstein Castle in Upper Bavaria partially collapsed to the north due to heavy rainfall, causing the evacuation of 50 residents under the castle complex.^[26] On 5 June, a 79-year-old woman which was missing since 2 June was found dead.^[16]

Rainfall and upstream flooding from Germany and Austria caused several tidal surges along the banks of the Danube and the Rába in Hungary starting on 6 June 2024. The Danube tidal surge forced closure of the Budapest Public Road along a section of the "lower quay of Buda between Mozaik Street and Rákóczi Bridge" and a part of "the lower quay of Pest between Népfürdő Street and Közraktár Street". The "main building" of the Budapest University of Technology and Economics was closed due to elevated river levels.^[27][28]

By 10 June 2024, alerts were activated along 912.4 kilometers of river sections, with the highest degree alerts in place along 10.42 kilometers of these sections. The Rába faced record water at 4.22m at Szentgotthárd, initiating a third-degree flood alert and prompting the National Water Management Directorate (OVF) to mobilize over 400 staff members to build up extensive flood defense efforts, including placing 120,000 sandbags to construct a 2.5 km flood barrier in Körmend. The Strém and Pinka rivers nearly received the monthly rainfall average in six hours, the latter recording its highest water level ever at 5.08m in Felsőcsatár.^[29]

Overflow in the Danube and Rába in turn caused several mosquito breeding sites to arise in Sopron, Debrecen, and Miskolc, requiring the National Directorate General for Disaster Management to use biological control to prevent further spread of mosquito-borne disease.^[5]

As of 17 September, 500 kilometres (310 mi) of the Danube is under flood warnings in preparation due to rising waters. In Budapest, the city government handed out 1 million sandbags to citizens. Train services between Budapest and Vienna were cancelled.^[11] The lower half of Margaret Island was closed off.^[30]

Concurrently with the late June flooding in Switzerland, the Valle d'Aosta and Piedmont regions in Italy were impacted with significant flooding. Approximately 200 residents in the Valle d'Aosta region had to be evacuated by helicopter from their homes in Cogne due to flooding and mudslides. Around 120 people in the Piedmont region were evacuated from Alpine villages following torrential rain.^[31]

In September 2024, flooding occurred in Pescara.^[32]

From 13 September, storms and torrential rainfall struck Opole Voivodeship and Lower Silesia, leading to flooding on 14-16 September. Five people were reported dead as a result of the floods, with thousands displaced and between 50-70 thousand left without electricity.^[33][34] Severe flooding alerts were reached in 82 measuring stations, primarily in the river basin of the Oder.^[35]

On 14 September, in the town of Głuchołazy, water overflew flood barriers and destroyed a temporary bridge on the Biała Głuchołaska river, leading to mandatory evacuation.^[36] Schools in the towns of Nysa, Kłodzko and Jelenia Góra were closed. Trains in the region were suspended due to multiple cases of track erosion and fallen trees.^[37]

On 15 September, Prime Minister of Poland, Donald Tusk, declared a state of natural disaster.^[38] 2600 people were evacuated from affected areas on that day alone.^[39] Flood barriers failed in the towns of Kłodzko and Nysa, leading to flooding up to 150 cm in the town centre of Kłodzko, with mayors calling for evacuation.^[40][41] The dam in Międzygórze overflew and was deemed out of control by the Regional Water Management Board in Wrocław.^[42] Later same evening, the dam in Stronie Śląskie failed, causing torrents strong enough to completely destroy homes.^[43][44] On 16 September water poured over the flood embankments in Jelenia Góra and Wleń.^[45]

Five people are reported dead as the result of floods in Romania.^[46]

After a strong wind on the night of 14 to 15 September 2024, which was preceded by several days of heavy rains, water streams in Slovakia also rose. The worst hydrological situation occurred in basins of Kysuca and Myjava rivers, and smaller Little Carpathians basins. The rivers Danube and Morava also rose.^[47] Rohožník, Jablonica, Stupava,^[48] and Devínska Nová Ves were flooded during night and morning. The Blatina (Saulak) brook overflowed and flooded the parking lot and the underground of an apartment building on Dona Sandtnera Street in Sídlisko Sever II, Pezinok.^[49][50] The 2nd and 3rd level of flood activity was issued for Western Slovakia on 15 September.^[47] On Monday, 16 September, at noon, the level of the Danube reached a height of 926 centimeters and overflowed onto the Tyrš Embankment (Tyršovo nábrežie) and Fajnor Embankment (Fajnorovo nábrežie) in Bratislava.^[51] The Danube reached height of 970 centimeters on Tuesday, 17 September, at 2:30 a.m.,^[52] at 7:00 a.m. the body of a 73-year-old man was found in the flooded basement of a family home in Devín borough,^[53] and the level of Danube reached 966 centimeters at 10 a.m.^[52] On Wednesday, 18 September, the level of the Danube and Morava peaked between 970 and 980 centimeters, in Devín they reached approximately 910 centimeters.^[54]

Although the city centre of Bratislava was mostly unscathed by the floods, several tram lines, the Bratislava Zoo and the Bratislavský lesný park sustained major damage.^[55] Damages across the country were estimated at 20 million euros.^[56]

From 11 to 13 June, heavy flooding caused by torrential rain severely affected the regions of Costa Blanca, Murcia and Mallorca in Spain. Heavy flooding in Murcia prompted 113 emergency calls, requiring the local Emergency Coordination Centre to respond to 324 issues. Damage by heavy rainfalls were exacerbated by inadequate drainage and road blockages caused by fallen trees and other debris. In Calasparra, a person trapped in their car while attempting to cross a flooded road was rescued by the fire brigade and taken to the hospital with hypothermia.^[8]

In Mallorca, Storm Tamara caused 71.8 mm of rainfall in four hours at the Palma Airport, flooding its runways and leading to its temporary closure. Videos from the terminal showed floodwaters nearly reaching the bottom of airplane engines. Over 100 flights were canceled or delayed, affecting British tourists traveling to and from Gatwick, Luton, and Bristol airports. In Costa Blanca, a sudden 20-minute downpour causing hail and significant flooding, with several recorded videos showing violent waters flowing through town centers and trapped citizens in cars, producing more rain than the entire summer's average.^[8]

In late June, a series of violent thunderstorms and melting snow triggered severe flooding and landslides in southern Switzerland, resulting in the deaths of at least ten individuals, with four others reported missing, including one from Binn.^[57] The cantons of Ticino and Valais in Switzerland were significantly affected. In the Ticino canton, three people lost their lives in a landslide in the Valle Maggia. Their bodies were recovered in the Fontana area of the valley. A bridge downstream from the disaster area was submerged, complicating rescue efforts. One campsite in the Valle Maggia was evacuated by helicopter, in addition to 300 participants in a local soccer tournament.^[31]

Another person was reported missing in the Lavizzara side-arm of the valley. In the Valais canton, a man was found deceased in a Saas-Grund hotel, which Swiss police said was likely due to unexpected flooding exacerbated by melting snow. Another individual was reported missing in a different area in Valais.^[31]

• 1910 European Floods - Historic flooding in Central Europe that resulted in the deaths of more than a thousand people.
• 2023 Slovenia floods
• 2021 European floods
• 2013 European floods
• 2012 Romanian floods
• 2010 Central European floods
• 2009 European floods
• 2002 European floods
• 1997 Central European flood

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