Prague - Heavy rain last night increased the water level of rivers in the northern, western and southern parts of Bohemia, specifically the Usti nad Labem, Plzen, Karlovy Vary, Liberec and South Bohemian regions.
Central Bohemian Regional Office Director Zdenek Stetina called a working group meeting on Friday morning in order to prepare for a possible flood threat during the weekend.
Prague City Hall spokeswoman Tereza Kralova said that "preventive anti-flood measures" have been implemented after the water level of the Vltava river increased. The Prague City Hall reacted by closing floodgates at the Certovka channel and asking drivers to move their cars from the Vltava riverbank. Also, all events scheduled to take place at the river bank, including the regular Saturday farmers' market and the Khamoro Roma festival, were canceled or moved to another location. Ship traffic near Prague has been suspended and the capital city's ports closed.
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The Czech Hydrometeorological Institute warned that rain will continue throughout the weekend. Meteorologists expect the water levels to increase the most in the northern regions.
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Moreover, Vaclav Havel International Airport Prague was forced to limit air traffic because of mist in the morning hours. In total 32 flights were canceled, 13 arrivals were re-routed to another airports, and many other flights were delayed, said airport spokeswoman Eva Krejci.
"From 5 AM to 8:30 AM there was mist at the airport, planes were unable to land or take off," said Krejci. Some of the arriving flights were re-routed to the airports in the Czech Republic's Brno, Ostrava and Pardubice, but also to Germany's Dresden.
By midday, visibility was still limited at the airport, and further complications were expected throughout the day.
