Much of country underwater
Tuesday, 17 August 2010 13:35 ALF News .Here onlookers watch over Helsingørmotorvejen in Ryparken at the several cars that were submerged in water from the storm on Saturday night. (Photo: Scanpix)
Damages for Saturday night’s torrential rains total half a billion kroner
The heavy rains which have poured over Denmark in recent days continues to sit snuggly over the country, especially the eastern parts, and last night they swept across the Baltic Sea to the island of Bornholm.
Between last night and this morning the island was hit by 70-80 mm of rain. Hardest hit was the town of Rønne, whilst the northern part of the island was luckier and got ‘only’ 10-12 mm. The storms ruined roads and flooded basements. In some places the asphalt on the roads was raised due to the seeping rain, according to Bornholm Police.
Damages from the colossal amounts of rain which fell over Copenhagen and eastern and northern parts of Zealand on Saturday night are adding up, with the latest figures saying the storm damage will cost a total of half a billion kroner. More than 100mm of rain fell on the city during the weekend and up to 50mm more was expected to fall by Wednesday morning.
The storm was initially a nightmare for Falck, which had to pump out the huge amounts of water from basements across the capital and surrounding areas. But now the problem is for insurance companies and politicians, who are being blamed for not taking enough action in preventing the damages.
One insurance company, Alm. Brand, estimates it will have to pay out 30-40 million kroner in claims due to the storms. It has received 850 claims so far, according to Berlingske Tidende newspaper, and the number is expected to climb to between 1,400-1,500 in all.
The town councils have allegedly been working on optimising the sewer systems by creating more green areas to help handle large amounts of rain water. Many streets were still under water this week, however, and the additional rain will further hamper drainage efforts.
