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Rebuilding Prague
Fri Apr 25, 2003
Listen in RealAudio 
Last summer, massive storms that raged across central Europe created the worst flooding on
record in the Czech Republic. Hi I'm Bryan Yeaton for the Weather
Notebook. Today, Charles Michael Ray takes us down a street in one of the hardest hit
districts of Prague, the country's capital.
The shop windows on the streets of Karlin are empty, and chalky water lines are caked about 6
feet up on the buildings Many residents are still digging their homes out of the mud.
Thousands of homes were totally lost in these floods and 20% population had no insurance.
Simon Panak directs People in Need, a leading Czech relief organization that is working on
disaster recovery. Panak says it will be 3 years before the Czech Republic is back to normal.
SP: It is a disaster of course, thanks to God only about a little less than 20 people died
which is a very good result of the Czech rescue system, and the rest is maybe some of the
cultural heritage which is like old archives which were flooded and they are frozen now. And
they should be then dried and it will take years, but the rest, I think will be rebuilt and
basically the country will go farther on.
Panak says the first priority has been to rebuild the schools and other public infrastructure
damaged by the floods, he adds that most of those who lost their homes should be back in new
ones by the end of the summer.
Charles Michael Ray normally reports from Sioux Falls, South Dakota. Our program is produced
with help from Subaru of America, and The National Science Foundation. You can find us on the
web at www.weathernotebook.org.
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