A man steers his turquoise rubber dinghy through stagnant water, he has a white paddle in his hand and a blue cap on his head.

What sounds like a relaxed summer excursion is bitterly serious in Hagen: The man is rowing through a main street in the city center.

The low pressure area of ​​Bernd hit Hagen in Westphalia with full force.

Almost all parts of the city are under water on Thursday.

Private houses, cellars and company halls were full, streets sagged, the fire brigade is in constant use.

Annina Metz

Editor for social media.

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"The Bachstrasse in Wehringhausen was completely flooded," says Marvin Volkmann, who photographed the rowing scene. “The masses of water carried stones and wood from the urban forest into the district.” Although the residents of Hagen-Wehringhausen lent a hand and supported the fire brigade, technical aid organization and the police, the water could not be stopped: “Many people improvised in the construction of Damming and diverting walls helped and thus kept the water somewhat away from house and business entrances. Of course, that only worked in places. When the rain fell heavier again on Wednesday around 4.30 p.m., unfortunately little was left of the previous efforts. " 

Chaos broke out in other parts of the city as well. A family from Holthausen was kept awake by the storm all night. The fact that stones and leaves were cleared from the gullies on the property in the evening didn't help. When the fire brigade arrived at night, the basement was completely under water. Electrical appliances, clothing and furniture had already been destroyed by then. In addition, there are objects of emotional value. The residents of the house stood in the basement until four in the morning and carried the water out of the house with buckets. Videos show how entire streets turn into raging rivers. Cars are being pushed around, and some houses have had no electricity for more than 24 hours. 

A family on Emst had better luck. Florian R. was with a friend when the rain started. At around 0.30 a.m., despite the storm, he made his way home. "At the level of the district heating plant, the water was up to my shins, I could hardly get through on my bike," reports R. At home he went into the cellar completely soaked. Fortunately: There was already water in all the rooms: "The water pushed up through two drains in the basement, it took almost three hours to dry the basement again." Together with his parents, those in the upper part of the house slept, R. managed about 80 liters with buckets from the house. The family has lived in the house for 28 years. There has never been water damage during this time.