Castlebar's twin town in Germany hit by serious flooding

by Johanna Blum

In the space of a few minutes on Saturday the Aisch river near Höchstadt - Castlebar's twin town in Germany - burst its banks due to heavy rains.

Countless houses were flooded and roads were impassable.

Höchstadt had not experienced such a flood for decades.

The Aisch valley was transformed into a gigantic lake landscape in a short time.

The traffic situation was also completely chaotic because many roads were impassable.

More than 500 helpers were deployed: fire brigade, technical relief organisation, water rescue, rescue services such as the Red Cross and police.

Cellars had to be pumped out and sandbags were used to keep the water masses away from the houses - often in vain.

By yesterday (Sunday) morning, the situation had eased and the roads were passable again.

The damage, however, is immense.