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| Europe floods: Hungary Danube set for record high | Europe floods: Hungary Danube set for record high |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| Hungarians have been warned to prepare for their country's worst floods ever as the Danube is set to reach record levels this weekend. | Hungarians have been warned to prepare for their country's worst floods ever as the Danube is set to reach record levels this weekend. |
| "We are facing the worst floods of all time," said PM Viktor Orban. | "We are facing the worst floods of all time," said PM Viktor Orban. |
| Europe's second-longest river is set to hit unprecedented levels in the capital Budapest in the next few days. | Europe's second-longest river is set to hit unprecedented levels in the capital Budapest in the next few days. |
| A state of emergency has been declared, and thousands of volunteers have been working to reinforce the banks of the swelling river. | A state of emergency has been declared, and thousands of volunteers have been working to reinforce the banks of the swelling river. |
| Water levels are set to reach 8.85m (29ft), some 25cm (10in) higher than the Danube's previous record high in 2006. | |
| Emergency workers have set up camps along the river as residents packed sandbags around their homes amid an atmosphere of concerned expectation, says the BBC's Nick Thorpe in Budapest. | Emergency workers have set up camps along the river as residents packed sandbags around their homes amid an atmosphere of concerned expectation, says the BBC's Nick Thorpe in Budapest. |
| Kristalina Georgieva, the EU Commissioner for International Co-operation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response, tweeted: "Hungary well prepared for highest ever measured water levels on Danube. We are monitoring & ready to assist." | Kristalina Georgieva, the EU Commissioner for International Co-operation, Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Response, tweeted: "Hungary well prepared for highest ever measured water levels on Danube. We are monitoring & ready to assist." |
| Mr Orban, who spent the night at a military barracks in the flooded western city of Gyor, said recent dry weather in Austria and Germany, as well as a hot forecast for Hungary over the weekend, gave reason to hope that Europe's worst river floods for more than a decade could soon be over. | Mr Orban, who spent the night at a military barracks in the flooded western city of Gyor, said recent dry weather in Austria and Germany, as well as a hot forecast for Hungary over the weekend, gave reason to hope that Europe's worst river floods for more than a decade could soon be over. |
| "The fact is that along the border (where the Danube lies between Hungary and Slovakia) the water level is already above the highest level ever measured," he added. | "The fact is that along the border (where the Danube lies between Hungary and Slovakia) the water level is already above the highest level ever measured," he added. |
| Budapest Mayor Istvan Tarlos said that in a worst-case scenario up to 55,000 people may need to be evacuated. | Budapest Mayor Istvan Tarlos said that in a worst-case scenario up to 55,000 people may need to be evacuated. |
| However, he said he was confident that only the lowest-lying areas would be exposed to the river's expanded flow. | However, he said he was confident that only the lowest-lying areas would be exposed to the river's expanded flow. |
| Nine hundred people have already had to evacuate their homes upstream, the Associated Press news agency reports. | Nine hundred people have already had to evacuate their homes upstream, the Associated Press news agency reports. |
| Mass evacuations | Mass evacuations |
| Widespread flooding in central Europe has inundated swathes of Austria, Germany, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, killing at least 15 people. | Widespread flooding in central Europe has inundated swathes of Austria, Germany, Slovakia and the Czech Republic, killing at least 15 people. |
| In the Slovak capital Bratislava, the main flood defences held firm against the swelling Danube on Thursday. | In the Slovak capital Bratislava, the main flood defences held firm against the swelling Danube on Thursday. |
| But while river water levels were receding in some areas, the Danube had yet to reach its peak in Slovakia, said the European Commission's newly inaugurated Emergency Response Centre (ERC). | But while river water levels were receding in some areas, the Danube had yet to reach its peak in Slovakia, said the European Commission's newly inaugurated Emergency Response Centre (ERC). |
| In northern Germany, workers piled sandbags along the banks of the River Elbe as waters rose, after widespread flooding further south. | In northern Germany, workers piled sandbags along the banks of the River Elbe as waters rose, after widespread flooding further south. |
| As flood waters receded to the south and east, defence work continued apace near Lueneburg in Lower Saxony. | As flood waters receded to the south and east, defence work continued apace near Lueneburg in Lower Saxony. |
| Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from threatened areas in Germany, where the flooding is worse than that recorded in 2002. | Tens of thousands of people have been evacuated from threatened areas in Germany, where the flooding is worse than that recorded in 2002. |
| The economic impact might be worse than the 11 billion-euro losses caused by the 2002 floods, said Eric Schweitzer, the president of the German chamber of trade and industry, | The economic impact might be worse than the 11 billion-euro losses caused by the 2002 floods, said Eric Schweitzer, the president of the German chamber of trade and industry, |
| "In some regions, the extent of damage is likely to be rather larger than in 2002," wrote Mr Schweitzer in an editorial for the Rheinische Post newspaper. | "In some regions, the extent of damage is likely to be rather larger than in 2002," wrote Mr Schweitzer in an editorial for the Rheinische Post newspaper. |
| On Thursday the Elbe flooded parts of Dresden as it peaked nearly 7m (22ft) above its normal level, but the city's historic centre remained unscathed. | |
| Upstream along the Elbe in the Czech Republic, emergency workers used boats to shuttle supplies to stranded people as large areas remained under water. | Upstream along the Elbe in the Czech Republic, emergency workers used boats to shuttle supplies to stranded people as large areas remained under water. |