At least five people have been killed and thousands evacuated after heavy rain caused widespread flooding in southern Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Villages, farmland, roads and rail tracks throughout Bavaria and Baden-Wuerttemberg are under water and rescue workers have been erecting sandbagged embankments in an attempt to contain the rising Danube River. Several cities have been placed under alert - the floods are expected to reach Passau, near the border with the Czech Republic, on Tuesday. Ferocious rains pounded the Alps over the weekend with torrents of water cutting off towns along the Danube. Hospital patients and prison inmates are among the many who have had to be evacuated. 

In Neu-Ulm, where the Danube meets the Iller River, 230 people had to be evacuated. 
River patrols picked up residents from flooded homes, moving them to dry ground, but were hampered because phone lines were down. Patrol Officer Kai Huster said: "They have (had) to call from the windows or use a mobile phone." 

Rising water levels

Reports say nine districts of Bavaria have been placed on alert and soldiers, backed by helicopters, have been called in to reinforce dykes and assist the emergency services. At Ingolstadt, the Danube has reached its highest level since 1845, and Lake Constance rose to its highest level for 60 years, flooding car parks and campsites. The situation is reported to be improving at the foot of the Alps, with the levels of the Iller, the Lech and the Wertach rivers beginning to drop. 

'Disaster tourism' 

On Monday, sunny skies and warmer temperatures brought hordes of sightseers to the banks of the Danube, hampering the rescue process. Authorities complained they were getting in the way of emergency vehicles. "Our people are wearing life jackets, and there are people pushing around baby carriages," a fireman told reporters. They could face fines of up to 10,000 marks ($550). "This disaster tourism is crazy" said a police inspector. 

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