Preventative measures have been taken in Divadelní Street, Prague 1, where a mobile barrier has been set up and an anti-flood gate at The Four Seasons Hotel has been closed. Also the steel gate protecting Čertovka has been closed since Friday. On Sunday, in the early evening, the operation of boats on the Vltava was brought to a stop and boats in Prague are being moved to safety ports.
According to the Deputy Mayor of Prague Rudolf Blažek, the city has been following its flood plan. “When the flow reaches approximately 600 cubic metres per second, two things take place – the anti-flood gates at The Four Seasons Hotel close and the passing through Divadelní Street also has to close, because if the water kept rising, these measures would not be possible to take place at a later stage,” he explained.
According to water experts, some 800 cubic metres per second are expected to flow through Prague on Monday morning, which is still only the first degree of flooding. The situation at the moment is not critical, the measures are only preventative. The increased flow is caused by Orlík Dam, which at the moment is withdrawing a larger volume of water. Everything is done in order for the dam to keep its capacity to hold water in case of further rainfall.
“At the moment, the flow in Prague should not exceed 800 to 900 cubic metres. I am not a fortune-teller to be able to say what the precipitations will be like in the near future but according to current news the situation in Prague is not expected to exceed the first degree flooding. In any case, restrictions on the operation of the metro would not be made until the flow reaches 1 200 cubic metres,” said the Deputy Mayor.
Although there is not an imminent danger, the City authorities do take the situation seriously, especially after the experience in 2002, when the flood in Prague reached between five thousand and seven thousand cubic metres per second. At that time the city assured its inhabitants that there was no danger. “At present, we are taking all the steps well in advance to be able to prepare Prague for any situation,” said Blažek.
The first degree in Prague was already declared on Friday. The City’s crisis management met on Saturday. On Sunday at 17:00 the flow of the Vltava was 583 cubic metres in Na Františku and 593 cubic metres in Malá Chuchle.
The anti-flood committee will meet again on Monday afternoon.
Prague is protected with a set of mobile and fixed barriers. It was designed in such a way that it should be able to hold a flood of the same extent as was the flood in 2002. Even if a similar flood was to come, the barriers should still have some thirty-centimetres in reserve. Other possible preventative measures are sewerage closures and booster pump stations withdrawing water and drainage from conservation areas.
Source: ČTK