Floodwaters continued to threaten Czech towns and villages in the north and south-east, preventing thousands of people from returning to their homes.

The Czech cabinet has declared a state of emergency in seven regions, allowing easier handling of the flood crisis caused by rising rivers.

RIVERS, swollen by rain and melting snow, forced hundreds of residents in the Czech Republic and Germany to flee their homes yesterday.

Prague braced for flooding today and 10,000 people were evacuated from their homes in a south-eastern town as rivers, swollen by rain and melting snow, rose to dangerous levels.