Flooding in Germany

[Keith_M]

Apparently the death toll from the flooding in western Germany has now reached 80.

Some of the scenes are quite horrendous


https://www.dw.com/en/death-toll-climbs-in-western-germany-flooding-live-updates/a-58284256



https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/16/western-germany-floods-angela-merkel-horror-catastrophe-deaths-missing-search-flooding-belgium (https://www.dw.com/en/death-toll-climbs-in-western-germany-flooding-live-updates/a-58284256)

[Santa Cruz]

Apparently the death toll from the flooding in western Germany has now reached 80.

Some of the scenes are quite horrendous


https://www.dw.com/en/death-toll-climbs-in-western-germany-flooding-live-updates/a-58284256



(https://www.dw.com/en/death-toll-climbs-in-western-germany-flooding-live-updates/a-58284256)https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/16/western-germany-floods-angela-merkel-horror-catastrophe-deaths-missing-search-flooding-belgium




It's a tragedy. I watched the devastation caused on the News last night. It's hard to fathom the scale of how fast this happened, catching people unaware and giving them no time to move to a safer location.

[Hibrandenburg]

Apparently the death toll from the flooding in western Germany has now reached 80.

Some of the scenes are quite horrendous


https://www.dw.com/en/death-toll-climbs-in-western-germany-flooding-live-updates/a-58284256



https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/jul/16/western-germany-floods-angela-merkel-horror-catastrophe-deaths-missing-search-flooding-belgium (https://www.dw.com/en/death-toll-climbs-in-western-germany-flooding-live-updates/a-58284256)




I'm camped up between the Rhein and Mosel just now. We're visiting the mother in law who lives just south of the disaster area in the mountains. It was absolutely belting it down here for over 48 hours and the tributaries higher up have morphed into full flowing rivers rather than streams and lower down the flood planes of both the Mosel and Rhein are now lakes. Things have eased off but the damage is such that we will probably have to make long diversions to get out of here come Sunday due to roads and even motorways having been washed away. I've only witnessed the aftermath and can only imagine the horror that must have unfolded at the height of the what was basically mass flash flooding, the likes of which have not been seen here for decades.

[hibsbollah]

Terrible. Id like to see this news bundled together with the awful scenes in western USA and explained as climate catastrophe is happening right now. There’s no reason why this isn’t as big a story as Covid.

[He's here!]

Terrible. Id like to see this news bundled together with the awful scenes in western USA and explained as climate catastrophe is happening right now. There’s no reason why this isn’t as big a story as Covid.

Interesting point. Not even vaguely comparable to the horrific events in Germany but it seems to me that the extraordinarily heavy rainfalls we get here in Edinburgh are significantly more frequent than I can ever recall.

[hibsbollah]

Interesting point. Not even vaguely comparable to the horrific events in Germany but it seems to me that the extraordinarily heavy rainfalls we get here in Edinburgh are significantly more frequent than I can ever recall.

Chickens are coming home to roost. I think we’re aware now of the difference between climate and weather, and the difficulty in directly connecting climate change to individual weather events, but it’s clear what’s going on. Severe weather events getting more frequent and more severe., from Australia to continental Europe to the US. Everything happening so much faster than was predicted. as years go by, that An Uncomfortable Truth movie is now looking a conservative prediction.

[Hibrandenburg]

Chickens are coming home to roost. I think we’re aware now of the difference between climate and weather, and the difficulty in directly connecting climate change to individual weather events, but it’s clear what’s going on. Severe weather events getting more frequent and more severe., from Australia to continental Europe to the US. Everything happening so much faster than was predicted. as years go by, that An Uncomfortable Truth movie is now looking a conservative prediction.

This is a dual carriageway just south of Cologne and about 7km away from the river Rhein. This is not just normal flooding, it happened so fast that some vehicles couldn't get out in time.

[The_Exile]

We were warned and we were warned and we we warned, it’s starting to ramp up and this is just the start. I think it’s now far past the point of no return and we can only react to the changes now.

In 20 years time we will still be jumping in fuel burning cars to go to the supermarket 5 minutes along the road and firing gas heating on in the winter. Sorry kids, our generation never had the balls to vote for green parties in parliament, enjoy the apocalypse.

[Sylar]

A story that will be compounded in years to come with droughts, intense winter storms and extreme snowfall, the wildfires we're already seeing in the Western USA/Canada (which are worsening year on year), cities running close to zero water...

Very easy to despair about the climate crisis - the impact it will ultimately have will be far greater than anyting we're seeing with Covid-19.

[ballengeich]

I see climate change as only one aspect of the effect humans are having on the environment. Even if we could move overnight to a zero carbon economy we would still be expanding human numbers and consumption, driving more species to extinction, and putting more and more chemicals into the environment without any understanding of the effects.

All political movements, even the Greens, which claim to be concerned about the environment have an underlying assumption that once we eliminate carbon based energy it's back to business as usual. I think climate change is only the start of our problems unless we move to a lower level of economic activity. That means we need to have fewer people each consuming less.

We can either achieve that by our own actions or, more likely, wait until our environment forces it on us.

[Just Alf]

Interesting point. Not even vaguely comparable to the horrific events in Germany but it seems to me that the extraordinarily heavy rainfalls we get here in Edinburgh are significantly more frequent than I can ever recall.

One of the properties my work mange has had 4 floods over the past 2 and a bit years, our historical records that there were only 2 in the 100 years before that .... (east Edinburgh)

[Hibrandenburg]

Over 1300 people now missing. Water is now receding but still on high alert.

I know this is nothing to do with the UK but every little helps.

https://www.aktion-deutschland-hilft.de/?wc_id=50199&ref_id=goo&gclid=Cj0KCQjw_8mHBhClARIsABfFgpgMYH6UbtokzzZQKF8N m_6eYl0xc3o8CD7YjJD_l80m4Vk4UjDY1RcaAi_vEALw_wcB

[Hibrandenburg]

That link gives out your full name and e mail mate.

Oops, it's my spam email address but probably best you delete your reply Ron. Thanks.

[Keith_M]

Over 1300 people now missing. Water is now receding but still on high alert.

I know this is nothing to do with the UK but every little helps.

https://www.aktion-deutschland-hilft.de/?wc_id=50199&ref_id=goo&gclid=Cj0KCQjw_8mHBhClARIsABfFgpgMYH6UbtokzzZQKF8N m_6eYl0xc3o8CD7YjJD_l80m4Vk4UjDY1RcaAi_vEALw_wcB


Jeezo, that's shocking.

I hope you and your family are OK

[JimBHibees]

That is horrific some of the aerial photos are mind blowing.

[Hibrandenburg]

Jeezo, that's shocking.

I hope you and your family are OK

All good Keith. Different story 20 kilometres to the north where it's utter devastation. There's a hell of a lot of people have lost their lives here in the valleys and flood planes below us and many more have lost everything they own. Feel guilty that tomorrow we can just drive away from it.

[Lancs Harp]

All good Keith. Different story 20 kilometres to the north where it's utter devastation. There's a hell of a lot of people have lost their lives here in the valleys and flood planes below us and many more have lost everything they own. Feel guilty that tomorrow we can just drive away from it.

Stay safe fella, truly shocking scenes on our news channels. Thoughts with people in Germany and Belgium.

[wookie70]

I see climate change as only one aspect of the effect humans are having on the environment. Even if we could move overnight to a zero carbon economy we would still be expanding human numbers and consumption, driving more species to extinction, and putting more and more chemicals into the environment without any understanding of the effects.

All political movements, even the Greens, which claim to be concerned about the environment have an underlying assumption that once we eliminate carbon based energy it's back to business as usual. I think climate change is only the start of our problems unless we move to a lower level of economic activity. That means we need to have fewer people each consuming less.

We can either achieve that by our own actions or, more likely, wait until our environment forces it on us.


Totally agree. growth ultimately leads to the death of the planet or at least many of the Humans on it. The whole world revolves around products that are generally unneeded and built to last for as little time as the market will allow so further sales can be generated. The world is ****** it is just a matter of how long it can hang on

[Hibrandenburg]

Stay safe fella, truly shocking scenes on our news channels. Thoughts with people in Germany and Belgium.

Thanks LH, for us it's just a minor inconvenience having to head east first before we head north. This area is used to flooding, but nothing on this scale and not at this time of year. It really doesn't bode well for the future.

[Hibrandenburg]

Totally agree. growth ultimately leads to the death of the planet or at least many of the Humans on it. The whole world revolves around products that are generally unneeded and built to last for as little time as the market will allow so further sales can be generated. The world is ****** it is just a matter of how long it can hang on

The world will survive Wookie, it's us that's ****ed.

[Keith_M]

All good Keith. Different story 20 kilometres to the north where it's utter devastation. There's a hell of a lot of people have lost their lives here in the valleys and flood planes below us and many more have lost everything they own. Feel guilty that tomorrow we can just drive away from it.


I'm glad to hear you and your family are safe.

:aok:

It's been quite shocking watching this unfold on Tageschau. We were a bit concerned about family in NRW but there's apparently no major issues where they live

[Sylar]

Seeing similar horrendous scenes today in both China and Nigeria. In parts of China, 550mm of rain fell in 24 hours…that’s between half and a third of Scotland’s annual rainfall in a DAY!

Between that, the ongoing heatwave and raging wildfires on the western coast of the US, it really does have an end of days feel to it.

[hibsbollah]

Seeing similar horrendous scenes today in both China and Nigeria. In parts of China, 550mm of rain fell in 24 hours…that’s between half and a third of Scotland’s annual rainfall in a DAY!

Between that, the ongoing heatwave and raging wildfires on the western coast of the US, it really does have an end of days feel to it.

The thought of being on a subway train, as was reported in Zhengzou. and flood water suddenly coming up to your chest…terrifying really. We’ve got family in Miami and they are really worried about the summer hurricane season. A part of the world living on borrowed time.

[Tommy75]

Totally agree. growth ultimately leads to the death of the planet or at least many of the Humans on it. The whole world revolves around products that are generally unneeded and built to last for as little time as the market will allow so further sales can be generated. The world is ****** it is just a matter of how long it can hang on

Yep, people of the world have walked in to the climate crisis with their eyes wide open and have done little nothing to change it.

Governments have spent billions and put in some drastic measures to respond to the Covid-19 pandemic but have shown nowhere near the same levels of urgency in responding to the climate emergency. Political parties are only concerned about the next election, although they may say it I don't think they actually concern themselves too much what will happen in 50 years. I'm not saying the response to covid and climate change should be the same but I definitely think the scale of the response should have been the same.

Sadly I think humans are intrinsically selfish and that is one of the reasons why climate change is unlikely to be reversed. Folk using their cars for unnecessary journeys, flying round the world unnecessarily, intense industrial farming, the single use and throw away culture are all contributing behavioural factors that individuals are unlikely to deviate from. Even if the majority changed their habits the actions of the minority will no doubt out do the benefits felt by that. I feel bad any time I buy something that is plastic or leave a light on too long yet we have these billionaires taking a jaunt in to space just for a laugh, makes me furious!

Bit of a gloomy post for a Friday but it is an area I feel strongly about.