On Wednesday morning, the Water Management Authority’s flood control centre said Luxembourg would remain in full alert status, with risks of major floods and significant impact on people and property.
The Alzette and its tributaries saw river water levels crossing the alert threshold overnight in areas around Bissen, Mersch and Ettelbruck. In Hesperange, where the alert level was reached on Tuesday evening, water levels were said to be falling for the Attert river, but remained elevated for the Alzette and Eisch rivers.
The Sûre river exceeded alert levels in Diekirch and pre-alert levels in Bollendorf in the early hours of Wednesday morning, with water levels slowly receding as of 9am.
The flood control centre has indicated the potential risk of flooding in areas around the Moselle river on Wednesday, with warning services on standby.
The rain is expected to continue throughout Wednesday, with further flooding possible, although weather conditions are relatively unstable and difficult to forecast. It is possible that thunderstorms will follow on Wednesday evening.
Authorities described the flooding as a ‘decennial’ event - meaning likely to happen once every ten years - but underlined that it is not expected to reach the catastrophic levels of summer 2021.
So far, around 20 buildings have been reported flooded, while six fallen trees have blocked roads across the country.
The red alert remains in place for southern Luxembourg until Friday night, while northern areas have been placed under orange alert.
A number of roads have been closed across Luxembourg due to flooding or fallen trees. The following roads around the country were blocked as of Wednesday morning:
In Luxembourg City, the following places are closed until further notice:
The following roads in the capital are closed until further notice, with diversions in place:
Ettelbruck council has warned motorists to avoid the Däich car park as it has been closed due to high water levels.
Luxembourg’s national weather service raised the initial yellow alert to an orange alert over the course of Tuesday morning. The red alert for southern Luxembourg was issued on Tuesday afternoon, with between 25 and 40 litres of rain per square metre forecast. The Kachelmannwetter weather agency estimated that up to 30-60 litres of rain could fall per square meter in certain areas.
On Tuesday morning, the pre-flood alert phase was also activated (cote de pré-alerte).
For real-time updates and information on current water levels, you can refer to inondations.lu.
Authorities have emphasised that the current situation is not a repeat of the floods that occurred in July 2021 in Luxembourg. However, to avert any re-occurrence, essential measures are actively being implemented.
Throughout Wednesday, people living in proximity to rivers should take necessary precautions, particularly in flood-prone areas like campgrounds or parking lots, to ensure their own personal safety.
The Water Management Authority has issued the following advice during the alerts:
Residents in areas at risk of flooding should:
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