According to the district administration, the flooding situation in the Trier-Saarburg district of western Germany has eased in the early hours of Saturday.
“The water levels of the Saar and other bodies of water are peaking or beginning to fall,” the district’s technical operations centre announced shortly before 2 am on Saturday (0000 GMT).
The evacuation of the lower-lying neighbourhoods in Schoden an der Saar had been successfully completed by early Saturday morning.
According to the district administration, 220 people were accommodated in a gymnasium in Saarburg-Beurig. A retirement home was also evacuated in Saarburg and a hotel in Trittenheim on the Middle Moselle. Around 50 people were taken to temporary accommodation in a gymnasium.
Around 1,000 people were deployed overnight on Friday night, according to a statement from the district administration. Additional reinforcements and support arrived from neighbouring districts.
Chancellor Olaf Scholz has cancelled an election campaign appearance planned for Saturday in Saarland.
Instead, he will visit the district together with state Premier Anke Rehlinger to get an idea of the situation on the ground, a government spokesperson announced in Saarbrücken on Friday evening.