ICPR – International Commission for the Protection of the Rhine

Flood warning and forecasting centres

Timely flood warning is one of the indispensable elements of flood prevention. Flood announcement centres in the Rhine watershed have been in charge of this task for many years.

In all Rhine bordering states the activity of these flood announcement and forecasting centres is based on the relevant legal basis. Generally, flood announcements regulate in detail, under which conditions the flood announcement system is taken up. Also, in most cases, the announcement pathways, and the media for spreading the news are regulated in detail.

During the past years, contacts among the different centres have developed on a bilateral scale and according to requirements. Some contacts are fixed in contracts or exchanges of letters, others are preferably informal. Naturally, information pathways proceed downstream. Flood announcements as well as forecasting and monitoring data are exchanged. The forecasting of downstream centres is based on monitoring values and forecasts of those upstream.

RWS WMCN Lelystad 

HMZ, Mainz

HVZ, Karlsruhe 

SPC Rhine-Saar

Bodensee-Vorhersagezentrale  BWG

FOEN  Bern

LFU Bayern

LANUV NRW

Warning and forecasting centres

Click on the card to see a geographical representation of the most important announcement and forecasting centres along the Rhine.