Hey folks,
now I am affected. Not in the sense that there's water in my home but the river Saale has reached a level we've never seen before as far as I know. Trams don't go anymore, both the planetarium and my boxing hall are flooded, and worst of all: A dam within walking distance from here was about to break yesterday. My parents live closer to it than I do.
The officials had appealed to the citizens to come to a certain place to fill sandbags. That spot was too distant for me but I wanted to try and help after my late shift, so I went near the dam to see if they need me there. They did, so I was filling sand-bags and passing them on in large human chains for almost five hours.
Count it as disaster-event-tourism! You don't see that every day... Usually, that dam is perceived as a mere walking way that happens to be called a dam. You don't even see the river from there on a normal day. Yesterday, however, I saw the river right beneath the top of the dam. The waning moon rose and was reflected in the water while I was passing on sandbags with dozens or even hundreds of volunteers.
Or count it as a weird workout. I think what I did is sold as "cross-fit" for lots of money in some gyms.
Nah, seriously, I'm a bit proud that I managed to work like that for hours and I don't think I would have done so well without all the training I had.
But what annoys is me a little is that the media don't appreciate those many volunteers. They report that the dam is safe for the time being (whew!) thanks to fire-brigades, the THW (a civilian disaster control organisation) and the German army. Sorry, but they would have never achieved that without those numbers of volunteers! Many young men, but also a few women or older men. Saw a guy with a broken foot who helped anyway and a brave middle-aged lady.
Doesn't hurt the officials to mention that effort, does it?
That's it from Halle. How are you doing in Praha, Kris?
Cheers!
Markus
