In many regions of Germany there is a threat of storms with heavy rain in the next few days.

Already on Tuesday afternoon there were warnings for several federal states in the west and south of Germany, around the Eifel even the highest severe weather warning level was declared due to extremely heavy continuous rain.

The German Weather Service (DWD) in Offenbach also warned of heavy rain and thunderstorms for other parts of North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate as well as parts of Saarland and Hesse.

The flooding of cellars and streets, flooding in streams and rivers, landslides and local lightning damage is to be expected.

Furthermore, trees could be uprooted or roof tiles could fall off in parts of Bavaria during severe thunderstorms.

Hailstorms could damage buildings, cars and agriculture.

"Low pressure areas in connection with warm and very humid air - that often doesn't mean anything good in summer," explained DWD meteorologist Felix Dietzsch. “Such weather conditions usually lead to sustained and heavy rainfall that sooner or later causes one or the other barrel to overflow. It is the same today and in the days to come, ”he explained.

Over Germany is currently low "Bernd", which should strengthen over the course of Tuesday, especially over the eastern half of Germany. From the afternoon on, severe thunderstorms developed, especially over Bavaria and Thuringia. "In the course of the evening, these gradually form into a linear complex and can bring heavy heavy rain, gusts of wind or hurricanes and large hailstones," reported Dietzsch. “In the course of the night, this thunderstorm complex then moves further north towards Brandenburg, Saxony-Anhalt and Lower Saxony. Flooded streets and cellars in particular are to be expected in the affected areas. "

In the outer west and southwest, heavy rain areas have been on the way since Monday evening. With the relocation of “Bernd”, more heavy rain areas would move, especially in the direction of North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate, and there ensured persistently high levels of precipitation until Thursday. “There are widespread storm-like amounts of over 60 liters per square meter. The highest amounts are expected to fall in the area around the Eifel. More than 80 liters are to be expected here, ”explained DWD meteorologist Dietzsch. In places and very limited, it could even come down to almost 200 liters within 48 hours.

Dietzsch did not give too much hope for improvement: “Heavy rain and thunderstorms will probably be with us until at least Friday. It was not until the weekend that the weather began to calm down from the northwest. Then it becomes widespread friendly with pleasant summer temperatures of 25 to 28 degrees. "

Heavy rains on the Rhine in Cologne have already caused the water level to rise significantly.

In the Deutz district, the water spilled onto the promenade.

The water level in Cologne was 5.39 meters on Tuesday afternoon - with a slowly increasing tendency, as the city drainage company announced.

However, the water level was still a little way from the so-called high water mark I (6.20 meters).

From this mark on, the first restrictions apply to shipping.

The automatically generated ten-day forecast of the Federal Waterway Administration (WSV) expected the high water mark I to be exceeded on Thursday or Friday.

"The forest has a long memory"

In Bavaria, the flood in West Central Franconia and North Swabia initially ran off, as reported by the Bavarian State Office for the Environment in Augsburg. The levels at the western tributaries to the Rednitz and Regnitz, in the upper reaches of the Altmühl and the Wörnitz were slowly falling, it was said. However, heavy local rain could lead to a dangerous increase again, especially in eastern Bavaria. In the past week, Central Franconia in particular was affected by floods. Heavy rain had filled the basement, flooded streets and occasional power outages.

For forest owners, on the other hand, the rain comes in handy, as their representative in Baden-Württemberg said: "At the moment, the forest can use every drop of rainwater," said the local forestry chamber manager Jerg Hilt on Tuesday.

"We are very happy that we do not have the fourth dry year in a row."

According to the latest forest status report by the Baden-Württemberg Ministry of Agriculture, 46 percent of the forest area is considered to be significantly damaged.

According to the report, which is based on random examinations of the needle and leaf curtain, damage can be traced back to the effects of drought and heat.

According to the forestry chamber, the extremely dry year 2018 is still having an impact because there was too little rainfall in 2019 and 2020.

"The forest has a long memory," said Hilt of the German press agency.