Flooding Spreading In Czech Republic, Bavaria, Saxony Bracing - Reuters [View All]

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Rivers across central Europe have been swelling fast due to rain and unusually warm weather which melted snow that fell late into the winter. The worst hit area in the Czech Republic was near the town of Znojmo, 200 km (120 miles) southeast of Prague, where 10,000 people were evacuated from low lying areas along the Dyje River near the border with Austria.

Residents in the German states of Bavaria and Saxony were also bracing for flood waters as weather forecasters predicted rain for much of the region through the weekend.

"The situation looks threatening," said Regional Governor Stanislav Juranek who called a state of emergency for his south Moravia region which includes Znojmo.

The Czech cabinet has called an emergency meeting for Thursday to discuss the situation and Prime Minister Jiri Paroubek said he would cut short a trip to Egypt to return home to assess the situation. About a thousand people were evacuated overnight from the eastern German town of Bad Schandau, close to the river Elbe in Saxony. Other communities were readying to leave their homes.

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http://www.planetark.org/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/35843/story.htm