Hydrologists clarify

“Not every flood can be predicted”

Floods and mudslides caused huge damage in Sellrain in 2015.(Bild: Christof Birbaumer)

A lot of data has to flow into a computer to calculate flood risk. The forecasts are more precise than ever, but they also have their limits. Hydrologists from the province of Tyrol explain where the limits of forecasting lie and which worrying trends they recognize. 

Roads and bridges torn away, flooded houses, fatalities - the current floods in Vorarlberg, southern Germany and Italy bring back bad memories.