IMAGO Archive: A History of German flooding.

With numerous climate disasters happening in recent months around the world - Germany has been one of the talking points in 2021 when back in July parts of the country suffered devastating flooding.

In the lead up and all throughout the nations general election, climate change and environmental action was at the forefront of most conversations with the Green party, winning 15% of the vote and achieving their best result ever in a national election. Not least part of this conversation was the flooding that occurred in hard-hit Western Germany in the summer after heavy rains swept across states. As flood victims begin rebuilding their communities and brace for winter, there is question over what can be done to prevent such events from reoccurring. 

We take a look back into the IMAGO Archive at the previous events that have altered the German landscape, changed communities and claimed lives. From the 1997 Central European flood, The Elbe flood catastrophe of 2002, the Alpine regions worst hit in 2005 and large scale floods along the Elbe and Danube, in the spring of 2013. 


IMAGO / Rolf Zöllner
IMAGO / Rolf Zöllner

IMAGO / Xinhua
IMAGO / Xinhua

IMAGO / Rolf Zöllner
IMAGO / Rolf Zöllner

IMAGO / fossiphoto
IMAGO / fossiphoto

IMAGO / Jochen Eckel
IMAGO / Jochen Eckel

IMAGO / Christian Thiel
IMAGO / Christian Thiel

IMAGO / Becker & Bredel
IMAGO / Becker & Bredel

IMAGO / Jochen Eckel
IMAGO / Jochen Eckel

IMAGO / Rolf Zöllner
IMAGO / Rolf Zöllner

IMAGO / fossiphoto
IMAGO / fossiphoto

IMAGO / Jochen Eckel
IMAGO / Jochen Eckel

IMAGO / Becker & Bredel
IMAGO / Becker & Bredel

IMAGO / Jochen Eckel
IMAGO / Jochen Eckel

IMAGO / Sylvio Dittrich
IMAGO / Sylvio Dittrich

IMAGO / Olaf Döring
IMAGO / Olaf Döring

IMAGO / Future Image
IMAGO / Future Image

IMAGO / blickwinkel
IMAGO / blickwinkel

IMAGO / Karen Oates
IMAGO / Karen Oates

See the full Archive Collection here.