Death toll rises as torrential rain and flooding force mass evacuations across Central Europe

PRAGUE (AP) — The death toll was rising in Central European countries on Sunday after days of heavy rains caused widespread flooding and forced mass evacuations.

Several Central European nations have already been hit by severe flooding, including Austria, the Czech Republic, Poland and Romania. Slovakia and Hungary might come next as a result of a low pressure system from northern Italy dumping record rainfall in the region since Thursday.

The floods have claimed six lives in Romania and one each in Austria and Poland. In the Czech Republic, four people who were swept away by waters were missing, police said.

Most parts of the Czech Republic have been affected as authorities declared the highest flood warnings at around 100 places across the country. But the situation was worst in two northeastern regions that recorded the biggest rainfall in recent days, including the Jeseniky mountains near the Polish border.

In the city of Opava, up to 10,000 people out of a population of around 56,000 have been asked to leave their homes for higher ground. Rescuers used boats to transport people to safety in a neighborhood flooded by the raging Opava River.

“There’s no reason to wait,” Mayor Tomáš Navrátil told Czech public radio. He said that the situation was worse than during the last devastating floods in 1997, known as the “flood of the century.”

“We have to focus on saving lives,” Prime Minister Petr Fiala told Czech public television on Sunday. His government was set to meet Monday to assess the damages.

The worst “is not behind us yet,” the prime minister warned as the flooding made its way through the country.

President Petr Pavel sounded more optimistic, saying “it's obvious we've learned a lesson from the previous crisis.”

Thousands of others also were evacuated in the towns of Krnov, which was almost completely flooded, and Cesky Tesin. The Oder River that flows to Poland was reaching extreme levels in the city of Ostrava and in Bohumin, prompting mass evacuations.

Ostrava, the regional capital is the third-largest Czech city. Its mayor, Jan Dohnal, said the city is facing major traffic disruptions in the days to come. Almost no trains were operating in the region.

Towns and villages in the Jeseniky mountains, including the local center of Jesenik, were inundated and isolated by raging waters that turned roads into rivers. The military sent a helicopter to help with evacuations.

Jesenik mayor Zdenka Blistanova told Czech public television that several houses in her and other nearby towns have been destroyed by the floods. A number of bridges and roads have been also badly damaged.

About 260,000 households were without power Sunday morning in the entire country, while traffic was halted on many roads, including the major D1 highway.

A firefighter died after “slipping on stairs” while pumping out a flooded basement in the town of Tulln, the head of the fire department of Lower Austria, Dietmar Fahrafellner, told reporters on Sunday.

Authorities declared the entire state of Lower Austria in the northeastern part of the country a disaster zone, while 10,000 relief forces have so far evacuated 1,100 houses there. Emergency personnel have started setting up emergency accommodation for residents who had to flee their homes due to the flooding.

Addressing reporters after a crisis meeting at the interior ministry in Vienna on Saturday afternoon, Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer said the situation “continues to worsen.”

He said 2,400 soldiers were ready to support the relief effort in Austria. Of those, 1,000 soldiers will deploy to the disaster zone in Lower Austria, where dams were beginning to burst.

Nehammer was expected to visit the disaster zone in Lower Austria later Sunday.

“We are experiencing difficult and dramatic hours in Lower Austria. For many people in Lower Austria these will probably be the most difficult hours of their lives,” said Johanna Mikl-Leitner, the governor of Lower Austria.

Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer, who was on his way to the disaster zone in Lower Austria, said that 2,400 soldiers were ready to support the relief effort.

In Vienna, the Wien River overflowed its banks, flooding homes and forcing first evacuations of houses in the river’s proximity.

Romanian authorities said Sunday that another two people had died in the hard-hit eastern county of Galati after four were reported dead there a day earlier, following unprecedented rain.

In Poland, one person was presumed dead in floods in the southwest, Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Sunday.

Tusk said the situation was “dramatic” around the town of Klodzko, with about 25,000 residents, located in a valley in the Sudetes mountains near the border with the Czech Republic. Helicopters were used to pick up people from roofs in a few cases.

In Glucholazy, rising waters overflowed a river embankment and flooded streets and houses. Mayor Paweł Szymkowicz said, “we are drowning,” and appealed to residents to evacuate to high ground.

A threatened bridge in the town collapsed under the flood pressure and a police station building was knocked down in Stronie Śląskie, after floodwaters burst through the town’s dam. Submerged cars could be seen in many places in the Kłodzko Valley region bordering the Czech Republic, while a new flood wave was expected there.

Energy supplies and communications were cut off in some flooded areas, and regions may resort to using the satellite-based Starlink service, Tusk said.

The weather change arrived following a hot start to September in the region. Scientists have documented Earth’s hottest summer, breaking a record set just a year ago.

A hotter atmosphere, driven by human-caused climate change, can lead to more intense rainfall.

Associated Press writers Monika Scislowska in Warsaw, Poland; Philipp-Moritz Jenne and Stephanie Liechtenstein in Vienna; and Stephen McGrath in Sibiu, Romania contributed to this report.

A resident hugs with her relative after being evacuated from her flooded house in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A resident is evacuated from his flooded house in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A dog stands at gate of a flooded house in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A resident is evacuated from his flooded house in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A resident with his dog is taken by a rubber boat from his flooded house in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A view of flooded houses in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A view of flooded houses in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A view of flooded houses in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A rescue worker struggles against a strong current during an evacuation operation during floods in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A rescue worker signals to his colleagues during an evacuation operation during floods in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A rescue worker struggles against a strong current during an evacuation operation during floods in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A resident hugs with her relative after being evacuated from her flooded house in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

People watch the junction of river Wien and Donaukanal channel as they flood their banks in central Vienna, Austria, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Heinz-Peter Bader)

The Donaukanal channel floods its banks in central Vienna, Austria, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Heinz-Peter Bader)

A cyclist looks at Donaukanal channel flood its banks at Urania observatory in central Vienna, Austria, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Heinz-Peter Bader)

The Donaukanal channel overflows its banks in central Vienna, Austria, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Heinz-Peter Bader)

A man stands in waist-deep water that has flooded the streets and houses in the town of Kłodzko, in Poland's southwest, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, after days of unusually heavy rain. (AP Photo/Krzysztof Zatycki)

Garages and a house flooded in the town Kłodzko, in Poland's southwest, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, after days of unusually heavy rain. (AP Photo/Krzysztof Zatycki)

A flooded backyard with carved wood religious figures in Kłodzko, southwest Poland, as days of unusually heavy rain have swollen rivers and spilled over embankments in the region, on Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Krzysztof Zatycki)

A drone image showing the floods in the Ostrava-Koblov district, Czech Republic, Sunday Sept. 15, 2024. (Petr Sznapka/CTK via AP)

Firefighters walk through a flooded road of Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A resident looks at his flooded house in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A destroyed house in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Residents look out from a window of their flooded house in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A resident looks at the river during floods in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Residents clear their flooded house in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A fireman walks to a house through a flooded street in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Flooded houses in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Flooded houses in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A resident carries sandbags to protect his house during floods Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A group of people stand next to a flooded street in Opava, Czech Republic, Sunday Sept. 15, 2024. (Jaroslav Ozana/CTK via AP)

A firefighter wades through flooded streets in Opava, Czech Republic, Sunday Sept. 15, 2024. (Jaroslav Ozana/CTK via AP)

A dog runs through mud during floods in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Residents watch the river during floods Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

An army helicopter flies over the flooded Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A man wades through flood water in Opava, Czech Republic, Sunday Sept. 15, 2024. (Jaroslav Ozana/CTK via AP)

Residents cross a bridge during floods in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A resident looks at the flooded city center of Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A resident looks at the flooded city center of Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A dog stands near the flooded city center of Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

The flooded city center of Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A resident carries bottles of water during floods in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Residents cross a bridge during floods in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Firemen help a resident during floods in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A resident looks at the flooded streets of Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Cars submerge in flood water in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

A flooded house in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Residents fill sand bags to protect their houses during floods in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

The Bela River flows past a church during floods in Mikulovice, Czech Republic, Saturday, Sept. 14, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Firemen attend to a house during floods in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Firemen drive through flooded streets of Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Firemen help residents during floods in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

Flooded streets and houses in Jesenik, Czech Republic, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024. (AP Photo/Petr David Josek)

ROME (AP) — Roma fired coach Daniele De Rossi on Wednesday in a move that was surprising despite the Giallorossi going winless in their opening four Italian league matches.

De Rossi, a former Roma captain, was hired in January to replace the fired Jose Mourinho and impressed so much during the second half of last season that he was given a contract extension in June through 2026-27.

“The club’s decision is made in the best interests of the team, to get back on the desired path as soon as possible at a time when the season is still in its early stages,” Roma said. “A heartfelt thank you to Daniele, who will always be at home at the Giallorossi club, for the work done in recent months with passion and dedication.”

Roma added that “communication regarding the team’s technical guidance will follow.”

Roma hosts Serie A leader Udinese on Sunday.

After opening with a scoreless draw at Cagliari, Roma was beaten 2-1 at home by Empoli. Draws at Juventus (0-0) and Genoa (1-1) followed — leaving Roma with only three points and in 16th place.

De Rossi had transformed Roma into a better attacking unit than Mourinho’s defensive teams but this season has produced only two goals.

Next week, Roma opens its Europa League campaign against Athletic Bilbao at the Stadio Olimpico.

Romelu Lukaku’s loan spell at Roma ended after last season but talented striker Paulo Dybala stayed with the club after considering a move to Saudi Arabia.

Roma’s American owners Dan and Ryan Friedkin have often made surprising decisions.

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer

FILE - Roma's head coach Daniele De Rossi calls out to his players during the Europa League quarterfinal first leg soccer match between AC Milan and Roma at the San Siro Stadium, in Milan, Italy, Thursday, April 11, 2024. (AP Photo/Antonio Calanni, File)

FILE - Roma manager Daniele De Rossi speaks to his team during a Serie A soccer match against Atalanta at Gewiss Stadium, in Bergamo, Italy, Sunday, May 12, 2024. (Spada/LaPresse via AP, File)

FILE - Roma's head coach Daniele De Rossi waits for the start of the Europa League second leg semi-final soccer match between Leverkusen and Roma at the BayArena in Leverkusen, Germany, Thursday, May 9, 2024. (AP Photo/Matthias Schrader, File)