Sep 17, 2024 - Energy & Climate
In photos: Devastating floods in Central Europe kill at least 19
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An aerial photograph from Sept. 15, shows a view of the flooded city center in Glucholazy, southern Poland. Photo: Sergei Gapon/AFP via Getty Images
Days of devastating flooding in Central Europe have left at least 19 people dead and displaced thousands of others from their homes.
The big picture: As Storm Boris moves through the region, it has brought several months' worth or more of rain to Austria, the Czech Republic, Germany, Poland and other countries in just a matter of days.
- At least 19 people have been killed and tens of thousands of households in Poland and the Czech Republic have been left without heating or fresh water, Reuters reported.
- Johanna Mikl-Leitner, the governor of Lower Austria, said at a press conference Monday that the "situation remains highly critical" and that the region is "still in a state of crisis," CNN reported.
Between the lines: Storm Boris formed from an epic clash of air masses, likely worsened by climate change.
- Unseasonably cold air dove southward from the Arctic and collided with warm, moisture-rich air flowing north-northeast off the record-warm waters of the Mediterranean Sea.
- The area of low pressure that spun up has been stuck — pinned in place by high pressure to the east and west.
- Human-caused climate change is leading to more extreme precipitation events. The record-hot Mediterranean, which itself is a climate change feature, likely added moisture and boosted precipitation totals further.
In photos:
Go deeper: Climate change made deadly European floods more severe: study
