Thousands evacuated as flood chaos continues

Thousands of people have been evacuated from their homes in a region of eastern Germany where the Elbe river has flooded and burst through a dam, while a swollen Danube was approaching Budapest where soldiers and volunteers are building flood walls, officials said yesterday.

Parts of the south and north ends of the Hungarian capital are already under water, but the city’s downtown area, including the parliament building and several large hotels near the river bank, are seemingly out of direct danger as flood walls were built to a height of 30.5ft.

Officials said nearly 8,000 volunteers and specialised crews in Budapest had strengthened flood walls by packing and placing one million sand bags and many are also monitoring defences for any leaks.

At least 21 flood-related deaths have been reported in central Europe, as rivers such as the Danube, the Elbe and the Vlatava have overflowed after a week of heavy rains and caused extensive damage in central and southern Germany, the Czech Republic, Austria, Slovakia and Hungary.

The latest fatality was an 80-year-old man who died of a heart attack in Austria yesterday while cleaning up debris caused by flooding, the German news agency dpa reported.

In Magdeburg, the state capital of Saxony-Anhalt in eastern Germany, more than 23,000 residents had to leave their homes after streets and buildings were flooded.