Damages from 2006 Elbe flooding tabulated

Flooding last spring on the Elbe River in the Czech Republic and Germany is estimated to have caused damages of 240 million euros, the equivalent of around 326 million US dollars. The estimate was tabulated by the International Commission for the Protection of the Elbe, a spokesman for the Environment Ministry said on Friday. The flooding on the Elbe took place last March and April. It was caused by the melting of unusually high snow cover as well as persistent rainfall. According to specialists, the winter/spring floods were the biggest on the Elbe since 1940.