On natural disasters in Germany

The anniversary of Hamburg's disastrous flood raises questions about how good German disaster prevention is today.

Dear Reader,

This week marked the 60th anniversary of the devastating flood that hit Hamburg in 1962, leaving 315 people dead.

In the midst of the night on February 16th, hurricane force winds blew masses of water up the Elbe river. The dykes that had been built around the city weren’t up to the task of holding the water back: either they were built too s…