“It may look ridiculous, but it is still thirty centimetres higher than the flood water level in 2002, which means that it will protect the station,” said the Mayor of Prague Bohuslav Svoboda. This part of the protection wasn’t in the Old Town in 2002, this is why it had to be tested.

How is Staroměstská protected?

In addition to the barrier around the metro station, there is also a barrier around the service lift, which leads to those premises in the metro that are closed to the public. What is more, eight wells are being prepared to pump out ground water, which would significantly rise during a flood. The station would, however, not been flooded, as the causes of the 2002 have been eliminated. See photogallery: How is Staroměstská protected?

Great job

The Old Town 2012 Drill showed that members of the integrated emergency system are able to build flood barriers from Mánes to Na Františku well under the set limit. For instance, the pumps, which are supposed to protect the city by making sure that water doesn’t get to buildings through sewerage, were installed by Veolia employees within three hours after they left the warehouse (see our photogallery). The flood barriers in the other parts of the Old Town were built just as quickly. Volunteer fire-fighters, soldiers, professional firefighters, Veolia employees, Czech Red Cross volunteers, metro workers, Prague Services Administration workers and both police forces participated in building the barriers.

What will be protected

The barriers that have been tested this year were already operational during the flood in 2002. They cost around 47 million CZK. The damage that would have been caused in the Old Town, if the barriers hadn’t been there, would have been much higher, as water would have certainly got to the Old Town Square. The total amount of the new flood protection expenses is four billion CZK. “Compared to the loss of 27 milliard CZK, caused by the flood in 2002, it’s money well spent,” said B. Svoboda.

Lifespan

According to the Mayor of Prague, the new barriers have a lifespan of 80 years. An important factor when protecting the city is a good communication system, which, of course, will be changed over time. In order to function perfectly, it is necessary to train new specialists, who will be able to build the barriers. There’s also a new polygon for that purpose located in Dubeč. 360 people participated in the drill. The norms show that they should be able to build the barriers within 48 hours.

Gap in the barrier

Watchful Praguers, who went to have a look at the flood drill, found out, that there were no barriers in Alšovo Embankment around the Four Seasons hotel. The barriers were not installed in that place after an arrangement with the hotel, which hosted an important international event. However, the barriers will be tested there, too, next week. An advantage is that their installation will not restrict traffic. The cost of the Old Town 2012 Flood Drill was half a million crowns.