EMS INFORMATION BULLETIN Nr 144
16/07/2021 EMSR517 – Flood in Western Germany EMSR518 – Flood in Belgium EMSR519 – Flood in Switzerland EMSR520 – Flood in The Netherlands EMS INFORMATION BULLETIN Nr 144 THE COPERNICUS EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT SERVICE The Copernicus Emergency Management Service forecasts, notifies, and monitors devastating floods in Germany, Netherlands, Belgium and Switzerland CEMS flood forecasting and notifying in Germany On 9 and 10 July, flood forecasts by the European Flood Awareness System (EFAS) of the Copernicus Emergency Management Service indicated a high probability of flooding for the Rhine River basin, affecting Switzerland and Germany. Subsequent forecasts also indicated a high risk of flooding for the Meuse River basin, affecting Belgium. The magnitude of the floods forecasted for the Rhine River basin increased significantly in this period. The first EFAS notifications were sent to the relevant national authorities starting on 10 July and, with the continuously updated forecasts, more than 25 notifications were sent for specific regions of the Rhine and Meuse River basins in the following days until 14 July. Figure: EFAS flood forecast from 12.07.2021 00:00 UTC Providing early and current maps of flooded areas On 13 July, the CEMS Rapid Mapping component was activated to map the ongoing floods in parts of Western Germany (EMSR517 Mapping Website , EMSR517 Activation Viewer). As a flood peak was foreseen on 16 July for segments of other rivers, CEMS preemptively acquired satellite images of the vulnerable area through Pre-Tasking on 14 July. These early images informed ensuing activations by the CEMS Rapid Mapping component based on the EFAS forecasts for areas in Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland and France.
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