[SLOW INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].

IN THE NIGHTOF JULY 14TH TO THE 15TH, 2021, MORE THAN 200 PEOPLE DIE IN GERMANY AND BELGIUM.

IT WAS ONE OF THE WORSTFLOOD DISASTERS IN RECENT YEARS.

[NARRATOR].

WHAT HAPPENED THAT NIGHT ON THE AHR RIVER IN GERMANY?

WAS IT THE RESULT OF WEATHER?

OR WAS IT DUE TO CLIMATE CHANGE?

WE DO KNOW THAT THESE EVENTS WILL BECOME MORE INTENSE.

[NARRATOR] MORE AND MORE EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS ARE HAPPENING ALL OVER THE WORLD: IN FRANCE, IN ASIA, AND THE USA.

HEAVY RAIN, FLOODS BUT ALSO FOREST FIRES AND DROUGHTS.

JUST A COINCIDENCE?

OR IS THERE MORE TO IT?

[CRICKETS CHIRPING] CLIMATE CHANGE IS NO LONGER A FUTURE THREAT, IT IS HAPPENING NOW.

[OMINOUS INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].THE AHR VALLEY LIES IN WESTERN GERMANY.

THE REGION IS FAMOUS FOR ITS WINE AND THE CELEBRATIONS THATFOLLOW THE HARVEST IN THE FALL.

THE PEOPLE HERE HAVE ALWAYS FELT LIKE THEY LIVE IN A PLACE WHERE OTHER PEOPLE GO ON VACATION.

UNTIL NOW.

IT'S JULY 14, 2021.

THE AHR IS NORMALLY A HARMLESS LITTLE STREAM, ITS LEVEL IS USUALLY BELOW 70 CENTIMETERS.

BUT NOW IT'S BEEN RAINING ALMOSTNON-STOP FOR MORE THAN TWO DAYS.

THE SOIL IS SATURATED WITH WATER AND THE LITTLE STREAMS THAT LEAD TO THE AHR ARE CONTINUING TO SWELL SLOWLY.

INSUL,nAT THE UPPER REACHES OF THE AHR, 8 A.M. [NARRATOR].OLIVER GRIESS IS NOT WORRIED AT THIS POINT.

THE RETIREE HAS ALREADY EXPERIENCED FLOODS MORE THAN ONCE.

[NARRATOR].

A BIT FURTHER DOWNRIVER, IN MAYSCHOSS, ALINA SONNTAG WORKSnAT THE WINEGROWERS' COOPERATIVE.

[NARRATOR].THE NEIGHBORING VILLAGE OF DERNAU.

THIS IS WHERE REBECCA ARNOLDY-HEIMANSFELD LIVES.

THE 26-YEAR-OLD GRAPHIC DESIGNER HAS LIVED HERE ALL HER LIFE.

SHE TOO KNOWS THE AHR ONLY AS AN IDYLLIC STREAM.

A PRIVATE VIDEO SHOWS HOW SHE USED TO VENTURE INTO THE STREAM WITH AN AIR MATTRESS IN THE SUMMER.

[NARRATOR].

A FEW KILOMETERS FURTHER EAST, THE LARGEST TOWN ON THE AHR, BAD NEUENAHR-AHRWEILER.

THE COUNTY SEAT WITH A POPULATION OF AROUND 30,000.

THAT AFTERNOON, WHEN IT BECOMES CLEAR THAT THE RIVER WILL REACH RECORD HIGH-WATER LEVELS OF OVER FIVE METERS, A CRISIS COMMITTEE GATHERS AT THE TOWN HALL.

WHAT HAPPENS THIS EVENING, OR DOESN'T HAPPEN, WILL BE DECISIVE.

THE DELA FAMILY LIVES NOT FAR AWAY: JULIAN, MARIANA AND DAUGHTER LEYLA.

[NARRATOR].

ALINA SONNTAG.

OLIVER GRIESS.

JULIAN DELA.

REBECCA ARNOLDY-HEIMANSFELD.

THEIR LIVES, AND THOSE OF MANY OTHERS, WILL COMPLETELY CHANGE OVERNIGHT.

500 KILOMETERS WEST OF THE AHR, IN READING, ENGLAND...

...THE SITE OF THE EUROPEAN FLOOD WARNING SYSTEM.

HANNAH CLOKE IS A PROFESSOR OF HYDROLOGY.

ON THIS DAY, SHE IS A LOT MORE CONCERNED THAN THE PEOPLE IN THE AHR VALLEY.

I NORMALLY WAKE UP IN THE MORNING AND LOOK AT WHAT FLOODING IS GOING ON IN THE WORLD BECAUSE IT'S ALWAYS FLOODING SOMEWHERE.

WE COULD SEE THAT SOMETHING SERIOUS WAS GOING TO HAPPEN AND REALLY QUITE WORRYING.

[NARRATOR].FOR YEARS, HANNAH CLOKE AND HER TEAM HAVE OBSERVED THA EXTREMEWEATHER EVENTS ARE ON TE RISE.

AND IT IS HAPPENING WORLDWIDE.

FOR EXAMPLE, IN SOUTH AFRICA IN APRIL 2022: HEAVY RAIN AND FLOODING COSTS OVER 400 LIVES.

[DISTANT INDISTINCT CHATTER] [NARRATOR].

IN TEXAS, IN FEBRUARY 2021: AN EXTREME COLD SNAP.

THERE ARE POWER CUTS IN LARGE PARTS OF THE US STATE BECAUSE POWER PLANTS ARE NOT DESIGNED FOR SUCH LOW TEMPERATURES.

OR IN THE AMERICAN NORTHWEST AND CANADA, IN THE SUMMER OF 2021... AN EXTREME HEAT WAVE LEADING TO FOREST FIRES.

WE'VE SEEN SOME ASTOUNDINGLY HOT TEMPERATURES THIS YEAR, AND THAT'S A REAL WAKE-UP CALL.

AND YOU'VE SEEN FIRES ASSOCIATED WITH IT, WE'VE SEEN REALLY BAD DROUGHTS.

[NARRATOR].HANNAH CLOKE HELPED ESTABLISH THE EUROPEAN FLOOD WARNING SYSTEM EFAS TO HELP PEOPLE BE BETTER PREPARED FOR HEAVY RAIN EVENTS.

THE PROJECT STARTED IN 2002, AS A REACTION TO THE HISTORIC FLOODING ON THE ELBE RIVER, WHICH COST 45 LIVES.

THE GOAL WAS TO MAKE SURE EUROPE WOULD NEVER AGAIN BE CAUGHT UNPREPARED FOR SUCH AN EVENT.

HANNAH CLOKE RECOGNIZED EARLY ON THAT SOMETHING BIG WAS ABOUT TO HAPPEN IN WESTERN GERMANY.

THE BLUE AREAS ARE THE ONES THAT ARE PARTICULARLY AT RISK.

SHE SENDS A WARNING TO GERMANY DAYS BEFORE THE FLOOD.

THERE WAS AN INFORMAL FLOOD NOTIFICATION SENT OUT BY THE EFAS SYSTEM AT THE WEEKEND TO AUTHORITIES IN THE RHINE BASIN SAYING: "HAVE A LOOK AT THE SYSTEM.

SOMETHING IS HAPPENING IN A FEW DAYS' TIME.

IT COULD BE QUITE SEVERE."

[NARRATOR].

IT IS STILL UNCLEAR TODAY WHERE THE WARNING FROM ENGLAND GOT LOST IN THE MAZE OF GERMAN BUREAUCRACY.

ON THAT DECISIVE EVENING, THE AUTHORITIES IN THE AHR VALLEY APPARENTLY KNEW NOTHING ABOUT IT.

IT'S INCREDIBLY DISTRESSING AS A FLOOD FORECASTER WHO'S SOMEONE WHO'S GIVEN YEARS OF THEIR LIFE TO IMPROVE FLOOD FORECASTING SYSTEMS, TO SAVE PEOPLE'S LIVES, TO GET THEM OUT OF THE WAY OF DANGER, TO SEE WHEN WE'VE GOT ALL OF THIS TECHNOLOGY IN PLACE, STILL WE CANNOT SAVE THOSE PEOPLE'S LIVES.

[SOMBER INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].MEANWHILE, IN WESTERN GERMANY, THE RAIN CONTINUES.

AND EVEN WITHOUT AN OFFICIAL DISASTER ALERT, THE PEOPLE SLOWLY REALIZE THAT SOMETHING IS HAPPENING.

IN THE VILLAGES ALONG THE AHR, THEY WILL BE FILMING WITH THEIR SMARTPHONES AS THEIR HOMES GET FLOODED.

[MUSIC BUILDS] [NARRATOR].

OLIVER GRIESS TRIESTO MAKE HIS GARDEN WATER-PROOF.

HIS GIRLFRIEND MANUELA FILMS HIM.

[NARRATOR].THE WATER IS ALSO RISING IN DERNAU, AT THE HOMEOF REBECCA ARNOLDY-HEIMANSFELD.

[NARRATOR].THAT DAY, HER HUSBAND IS AT WORK AS A PARAMEDIC.

SHE AND A FRIENDTRY TO SECURE THEIR BELONGINGS.

[NARRATOR].

IN SOME PLACES, SIRENS OR THE FIRE DEPARTMENT ISSUE WARNINGS.

BUT NOT EVERYWHERE.

[NARRATOR].

THE CAMPSITESON THE UPPER REACHES OF THE AHR, ON THE STATE-BORDER BETWEEN NORTH RHINE-WESTFALIA AND RHINELAND-PALATINATE, THEY ARE THE FIRST TO BE REALLY HIT HARD BY THE FLOOD.

FOR EXAMPLE, THE STAHLHüTTE CAMPSITE NEAR DORSEL.

[NARRATOR].MARIO FRINGS OPERATES THE SITE.

[NARRATOR].NOT EVERYONE TAKES THE WARNING SERIOUSLY.

THE WATER RISES FASTER AND FASTER.

A FLOOD WAVE FORMS AND HITS THE CAMPSITE.

CARAVANS ARE SWEPT AWAY FLOATING IN THE CURRENTS, CRASHING AGAINST THE BRIDGE PIERS DOWNSTREAM.

WITH HIS TRACTOR, MARIO FRINGS DESPERATELY TRIES TO BRING PEOPLE ON HIS CAMPSITE TO SAFETY.

A VIDEO RECORDING SHOWS HIS SITUATION.

BUT THE TRACTOR IS STARTING TO FLOAT AND HE HAS TO TURN BACK.

A SQUAD AT THE ADENAU VOLUNTEER FIRE DEPARTMENT ALSO ARRIVES AT THE CAMPSITE.

BUT THE EVACUATION OF RESIDENTS IS NOT EASY.

[NARRATOR].

ONE MEMBER OF THE SQUAD IS KATHARINA KRAATZ, ONLY 19 YEARS OLD BUT ALREADY A PASSIONATE FIREFIGHTER - THAT IS HOW HER MOTHER TELLS IT.

[NARRATOR].

WHEN KATHARINA AND THE OTHERS ARRIVE AT THE CAMPSITE, SHE TRIES TO GET AN INJURED WOMAN OUT OF HER MOBILE HOME.

BUT BOTH ARE TRAPPED BY THE WATER.

[NARRATOR].A HELICOPTER SEARCHES FOR KATHARINA AND THE WOMAN, WITHOUT SUCCESS.

HER MOTHER IS AT HOME AT THIS TIME, UNAWARE OF WHAT HAS HAPPENED.

[NARRATOR].THE PARENTS LEARN THE FATE OF THEIR DAUGHTER SEVERAL DAYS LATER.

[SOMBER INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].

KATHARINAAND THE WOMAN SHE WANTED TO HELP ARE BOTH AMONG THE DEAD.

THE CAMPING RESORT...

THESE DAYS, IT IS DEVASTATED.

THE FACILITYIS ALMOST COMPLETELY DESTROYED.

TODAY, THERE IS A MEMORIAL STONE NEAR THE RIVER: FOR KATHARINA AND THE OTHERS WHO DIED.

[SOMBER MUSIC] [NARRATOR].

FOUR MORE FIREFIGHTERS IN ADDITION TO KATHARINA DIED IN THE FLOOD.

THE EVENING OF JULY 14TH.

AFTER THE CAMPSITES, THE WAVE HITS THE VILLAGE OF SCHULD.

AT FIRST, PEOPLE STAND ALONGTHE EDGE OF THE RIVER, CURIOUS.

THEN, THEY SLOWLY BECOME AWARE OF THE SEVERITY OF THE SITUATION.

ENTIRE LIVELIHOODS WIPED OUT IN AN INSTANT.

A FAMILY OF CARNIVAL OPERATORS FILMS HOW THEIR WAGONS ARE SWEPT AWAY.

[FOREBODING MUSIC] [NARRATOR].THERE'S STILL TIME TO WARN THE CITIES ONTHE LOWER REACHES OF THE RIVER.

THE FLOOD WAVE WILL TAKE HOURS TO REACH THEM, BUT THE CELLPHONE NETWORK IS DOWN IN MANY PLACES.

OLIVER GRIESS AND HIS PARTNERLIVE IN THE NEIGHBORING VILLAGE OF INSUL.

A RESIDENT FILMS HOW THE WATER PRESSES AGAINST THE BRIDGE NEXT TO THEIR HOUSE, UNTIL, AT SOME POINT, IT CAN NO LONGER HOLD.

[NARRATOR].

OLIVER GRIESS AND MANUELA ARE TRAPPED IN THEIR HOUSE ALONG WITH THEIR NEIGHBORS, TWO DOGS AND A CAT.

ANOTHER NEIGHBOR FILMS THEIR HOUSE FROM ACROSS THE STREET.

[NARRATOR].

THE FLOOD CONTINUES TO RAGE.

THE WATER PROBABLY CLIMBS UP TOMORE THAN 9 METERS NEAR ALTENAHR AND IS NOW APPROACHING THE NARROWEST POINT OF THE AHR VALLEY.

THROUGHOUT HISTORY, THERE HAVE ALWAYS BEEN FLOODS ON THE AHR, THE LAST MAJOR FLOOD, IN 1910.

MIGHT THE EVENT OF 2021 SIMPLY BE A NORMAL FLUCTUATION IN THE WEATHER?

WHAT SPEAKS AGAINST THAT THEORY IS THAT HEAVY RAINFALL IS INCREASING ALL OVER THE WORLD.

KATJA FRIELER STUDIES EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS AT THE POTSDAM INSTITUTE FOR CLIMATE IMPACT RESEARCH.

[NARRATOR].THE WORLD IS NOW 1.2 DEGREES CENTIGRADE WARMER THAN IN PRE-INDUSTRIAL TIMES.

AT THE SAME TIME, EXTREME WEATHER IS BECOMING MORE FREQUENT.

GEOPHYSICIST ALEX RUANE WORKS FOR NASA, HE IS ONE OF THE AUTHORS OF THE WORLD CLIMATE REPORT.

TO HIM, THE CONNECTIONS ARE OBVIOUS.

[ALEX].

WHEN WE LOOK AROUND THE WORLD IN 2021, WE SEE MANY EXAMPLES OF CLIMATE IMPACTS AND EXTREME EVENTS THAT ARE CONSISTENT WITH OUR UNDERSTANDING OF WHAT CLIMATE CHANGE WILL MEAN.

WE SAW WILDFIRES ALL ACROSS THE WEST.

WE SAW EXTREME HEAT WAVES IN BRITISH COLUMBIA.

WE SAW HEAVY FLOODING AND PRECIPITATION EVENTS IN EASTERN ASIA, AS WELL AS IN CENTRAL AND WESTERN EUROPE.

[NARRATOR].

BUT CAN THIS BE PROVEN?

CAN A SINGLE EVENT, LIKE THE HEAVY RAIN IN JULY 2021, REALLY BECOME MORE LIKELY DUE TO GLOBAL WARMING?

A RELATIVELY YOUNG DISCIPLINE IS INVESTIGATING JUST THAT, SO CALLED ATTRIBUTION RESEARCH.

AROUND 40 SCIENTISTS FROM SEVERAL COUNTRIES ARE WORKING TOGETHER.

PROFESSOR HAYLEY FOWLER OF NEWCASTLE UNIVERSITY IN ENGLAND IS ONE OF THEM.

[HALEY].

AN ATTRIBUTION STUDY IS WHERE WE'RE TRYING TO WORK OUT WHETHER AN EVENT IS CAUSED BY HUMAN INDUCED GLOBAL WARMING, OR AT LEAST HOW MUCH THAT EVENT HAS CHANGED BECAUSE OF GLOBAL WARMING.

[NARRATOR].

AT THE SORBONNE IN PARIS, METEOROLOGIST AND CLIMATOLOGIST ROBERT VAUTARD IS ALSO INVOLVED IN RESEARCHING THE CAUSES OF THE AHR FLOOD.

[NARRATOR].

THE IDEA OF THE RESEARCH TEAM: THEY TAKE TWO MODELS, THE REAL WORLD, AND AN ARTIFICIAL EARTH.

ONE, IN WHICH CLIMATE CHANGE HAS NEVER OCCURRED, 1.2 DEGREES CENTIGRADE COLDER THAN TODAY'S WORLD.

AND THEN THEY TRY TO SIMULATE AN EVENT LIKE THE HEAVY RAINFALL ON THE AHR RIVER.

[NARRATOR].

USING SUCH SIMULATIONS, THE RESEARCHERS HAVE ALREADYBEEN ABLE TO FIND SOME ANSWERS.

[HALEY].

THE 2003 EUROPEAN HEATWAVE WAS VERY MUCH THE FIRST TIME THAT AN INDIVIDUAL EVENT HAD BEEN ABLE TO BE ATTRIBUTED TO HUMAN CAUSED CLIMATE CHANGE.

[TENSE MUSIC] [NARRATOR].

THE 2003 HEATWAVE IN FRANCE.

ATTRIBUTION RESEARCHERS FOUND THAT IT WAS TWICE AS LIKELY.

IT COST THE LIVES OF NEARLY 15,000 PEOPLE, MOSTLY ELDERLY.

2019 IN AUSTRALIA.

WILDFIRES HERE HAVE BECOME 30% MORE LIKELY BECAUSE OF GLOBAL WARMING.

[SIRENS WAILING IN DISTANCE] [NARRATOR].

2017 IN TEXAS.

HURRICANE HARVEY, WHICH FLOODED HOUSTON... THREE TIMES MORE LIKELY BECAUSE OF CLIMATE CHANGE, ACCORDING TO AN ATTRIBUTION STUDY.

[NARRATOR].

AND ON THE AHR?

WILL THE SCIENTISTS GET A CLEAR RESULT HERE?

[SLOW INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].INSUL ON THE AHR, EVENING OF JULY 14.

OLIVER GRIESS AND HIS FAMILY HAVE FLED TO THE TOP FLOOR OF THEIR HOUSE.

HE IS JUST TAKING OFF HIS WET CLOTHES.

THEN IT HAPPENS.

[NARRATOR].OLIVER GRIESS IS SWEPT OUTSIDE.

THE FLOOD TEARS DOWN THE ROOF OF THE HOUSE, HALF OF THE ATTIC COLLAPSES.

MEANWHILE, HIS PARTNER IS STILL UPSTAIRS.

[TENSE INSTRUMENTAL] [NARRATOR].

THE FLOOD CONTINUES TO MAKE ITS WAY, NOW RUSHING AT SPEEDS UP TO THREE METERS PER SECOND.

IT REACHES THE VILLAGE OF KREUZBERG.

CORNELIA WEIGAND,AT THAT TIME, MAYOR OF ALTENAHR, IS WATCHING HOW HER HOME TOWN IS DESTROYED.

[NARRATOR].

WHAT'S PARTICULARLY TRAGIC IS THAT, THAT VERY AFTERNOON, WEIGAND HAS TRIED TO MAKE CLEAR TO THE CRISIS TEAM IN BAD NEUENAHR HOW SERIOUS THE SITUATION IS.

[NARRATOR].BUT THE CRISIS TEAM FAILS TO RECOGNIZE THE RISK.

[NARRATOR].

THERE WOULD STILL BE TIMENTO EVACUATE THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE ON THE LOWER COURSE OF THE AHR THAT EVENING.

YET, NOBODY DECLARES A STATE OF EMERGENCY.

THE RESPONSIBLE COUNTY COMMISSIONER HAS ALREADY GONE BACK HOME.

THE FIRE DEPARTMENTS DO TRY TO WARN PEOPLE.

FRIEDHELM JAKOBS IS A DEPUTY SUPERVISOR IN AHRWEILER AT THE TIME.

[NARRATOR].

THAT DAY, FRIEDHELM JAKOBS IS DRIVING THROUGH HIS TOWN.

HERE IS A RECORDING OF HIS OFFICIAL ANNOUNCEMENT: [NARRATOR].

MAYBETHAT'S AN ANSWER TO THE QUESTION OF WHY PEOPLE WERE NOT WARNED MORE CLEARLY, EVEN THOUGH ALL DATA, SHOWING WHAT WOULD HAPPEN THAT EVENING, WAS THERE.

[HANNAH].

I THINK THAT PEOPLE COULD NOT IMAGINE THEY WERE IN DANGER.

MUNICIPAL AUTHORITIES DIDN'T BELIEVE THAT THEIR CITIZENS WERE AT RISK AND THEY DIDN'T TAKE THE ACTION BECAUSE THEY HADN'T EXPERIENCED THIS TYPE OF FLOOD BEFORE.

THEY COULDN'T BELIEVE IT WOULD HAPPEN.

[NARRATOR].TO FIND OUT THE ROLE THAT GLOBAL WARMING PLAYED IN THE FLOODING OF THE AHR RIVER, HAYLEY FOWLER AND ROBERT VAUTARD SIMULATE THE AHR FLOOD IN TWO MODELS...

THE REAL WORLD AND THE ONE IN WHICH GLOBAL WARMING NEVER HAPPENED.

THEIR CONCLUSION?

THE HEAVY RAINS IN WESTERN GERMANY HAVE BECOME MORE LIKELY DUE TO GLOBAL WARMING, UP TO NINE TIMES MORE LIKELY.

[NARRATOR].IN A WORLD WITHOUT CLIMATE CHANGE SUCH AN EVENT HAPPENED EVERY 480 TO 3,600 YEARS.

SO, IN THE PAST, SUCH A FLOOD MIGHT HAVE OCCURRED EVERY FEW GENERATIONS.

WITH GLOBAL WARMING, THOSE EXTREME EVENTS HAPPEN MUCH MORE FREQUENTLY.

DURING THE LIFETIME OF EACH GENERATION OR PERHAPS EVEN SEVERAL TIMES A GENERATION.

AN EVENT THAT WE EXPECT TO OCCUR EVERY 100 YEARS, EVERY 400 YEARS, EVERY 1,000 YEARS, THOSE EXTREME EVENTS ARE NOW HAPPENING MORE FREQUENTLY.

NOW, FOR ANY ONE SPOT, IT'S HARD TO SAY WHAT THAT RETURN PERIOD IS.

YOU CAN EVEN HAVE TWO 100-YEAR FLOODS BACK TO BACK.

STATISTICALLY, THAT'S POSSIBLE.

[NARRATOR].

THE INTENSITY OF HEAVY RAIN HAS ALSO INCREASED DUE TO CLIMATE CHANGE.

IF GLOBAL WARMING INCREASES FURTHER TO 2 DEGREES CENTIGRADE, THE INTENSITY WOULD INCREASE ALONG WITH IT.

BUT WHY DOES GLOBAL WARMING LEAD TO MORE FREQUENT AND HEAVIER RAIN?

WHAT ARE THE MECHANISMS RESPONSIBLE FOR THIS?

BACK TO THE EVENING OF JULY 14TH.

AROUND 9 P.M., THE FLOOD HITS THE VILLAGES OF MAYSCHOSS AND DERNAU.

ALINA SONNTAG ISIN THE WINEGROWERS' COOPERATIVE AT THIS TIME.

SHE AND HER COLLEAGUESARE TRYING TO SAVE THEIR CELLAR.

[NARRATOR].THE WATER SPREADS TO THE WINE CELLAR.

THE PALLETS ARE QUICKLY SUBMERGED.

[NARRATOR].THE NEIGHBORING VILLAGE OF DERNAU.

REBECCA ARNOLDY-HEIMANSFELD'S HOME IS ALREADY ENCLOSED BY WATER.

SHE FILMS OUT OF THE WINDOW.

[NARRATOR].

THEN, THERE IS NO ESCAPE.

[NARRATOR].

FROM THE NEIGHBORHOOD, HANDYMAN SEBASTIAN TETZLAFF SENDS DRAMATIC VIDEO MESSAGES.

[NARRATOR].SEBASTIAN RUNS UPSTAIRS TO GET INTO SAFETY, BUT THE WATER CONTINUES TO RISE.

[NARRATOR].ON THE MAIN ROAD, ANOTHER RESIDENT IS FILMING.

[SOMBER PIANO INSTRUMENTAL] [NARRATOR].WHY EXACTLY DOES EXTREME RAINFALL BECOME MORE LIKELY DUE TO GLOBAL WARMING?

TO UNDERSTAND THIS, WE MUST FIRST KNOW HOW RAIN IS FORMED.

GEOPHYSICIST FABIO D'ANDREA TEACHES AT THE ENS UNIVERSITY IN PARIS.

THE PROCESS IS ACTUALLY QUITE SIMPLE.

[FABIO].

ACTUALLY, THERE IS ALWAYS WATER IN THE AIR.

THERE'S WATER IN THE AIR NOW.

YOU DON'T SEE IT BECAUSE WATER VAPOR IS INVISIBLE.

BUT IN THIS CLASSROOM, THERE IS WATER.

THERE MIGHT BE A GLASS OF WATER FLOATING IN THE AIR AROUND US.

NOW THINK OF HOW BIG THE ROOM IS ABOVE CONTINENTAL EUROPE.

THERE ARE MILLIONS OF TONS OF WATER FLOATING OVER OUR HEAD.

SO, WHEN A STORM COMES LIKE THE ONE OF GERMANY, IT WILL FALL ON THE GROUND.

[NARRATOR].

WHEN THE MOIST, WARM AIR RISES TO A HIGHER ALTITUDE, IT COOLS DOWN.

AS IT DOES, THE WATER VAPOR IN THE AIR CONDENSES INTO DROPSAND FALLS TO THE GROUND AS RAIN.

THAT'S HOW IT NORMALLY WORKS.

BUT THE WORLD HAS BECOME WARMER, 1.2 DEGREES CENTIGRADE SO FAR.

THE WARMER IT GETS, THE MORE WATER EVAPORATES INTO THE AIR.

IT'S ALSO IN THIS ROOM, IF WE TURN UP THE HEATING AND WE PUT SOME WATER ON THE GROUND, THE WATER WILL EVAPORATE AND THERE WILL BE MORE IN THE AIR.

[NARRATOR].

AND NOW THERE'S SOMETHING ELSE: THE WARMER THE AIR,THE MORE MOISTURE IT CAN ABSORB.

FOR EACH DEGREE IT GETS WARMER, THE AIR CAN STORE 7% MORE WATER.

[ALEX].

NOT ONLY IS IT CAPABLE OF IT IF IT WANTS TO.

SOME PEOPLE SAY IT'S THIRSTIER AIR.

IN THAT SENSE, WHENEVER THERE IS A DRY CONDITION OR EVEN WHAT WE CONSIDER A NORMAL CONDITION, THERE IS MORE EVAPORATION, MORE TRANSPIRATION FROM PLANTS, MORE WATER BEING PULLED OUT OF THE SURFACE INTO THE AIR.

[NARRATOR].AND WHEN THE TURBO IN THE SYSTEM DRAWS A LOT OF WATER TO CERTAIN PLACES, MORE DROUGHTS ARE HAPPENING ELSEWHERE.

[SOFT INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].THE LATEST WORLD CLIMATE REPORT SHOWS THE DATA.

IN THE GREEN PARTS, THERE IS MORE EXTREME RAIN.

IN THE RED PARTS, THERE IS MORE EXTREME HEAT.

[HALEY].

IRONICALLY, GLOBAL WARMING CAN ALSO CAUSE MORE DROUGHT AS WELL.

SO IT DOESN'T JUST CAUSE MORE RAIN, IT CAUSES A LACK OF RAIN AS WELL.

AND SO THAT MEANS THAT THE RAINFALL BECOMES MORE CONCENTRATED IN CERTAIN TIMES AND SPACES.

SO, SOME PLACES WILL GET MORE DROUGHTS, AND SOME PLACES WILL GET MORE INTENSE RAINFALL AND FLOODS.

[NARRATOR].SOMETIMES BOTH HAPPEN AT THE SAME PLACE.

PERIODS OF HEAT ARE GETTING HOTTER, AND BETWEEN HEAT WAVES, MUCH MORE RAIN IS FALLING THAN IT USED TO.

[NARRATOR].ON THE AHR, PEOPLE HAVE NOTICED THE HEAT WAVES.

THEY ALREADY HAD AN IMPACTON THE WORK OF THE WINE GROWERS.

[NARRATOR].

IT'S HAPPENING WORLDWIDE.

IN CALIFORNIA'S NAPA VALLEY WINE REGION, FOR EXAMPLE, SOME WINE GROWERS ARE ALREADY CULTIVATING HEAT-RESISTENT GRAPE VARIETIES.

SO, IN MANY CASES, YOU'RE SEEING MORE OF THE HOT AND DRY CONDITIONS IN CALIFORNIA WHICH WOULD FAVOR GRAPES THAT LIKE HOT AND DRY CONDITIONS AND PUSH THE OTHER GRAPES UP FURTHER NORTH.

SO WE'VE SEEN DRAMATIC EXPANSION IN WINE GROWING IN THE WILLAMETTE VALLEY IN OREGON AND PARTS OF THE COLUMBIA RIVER BASIN IN WASHINGTON.

[NARRATOR].

AROUND THE WORLD, THE WEATHER IS GETTING MORE EXTREME, AND NOT JUST BECAUSE OF WARMER AIR.

THERE ARE OTHER REASONS FOR THIS AS WELL.

AROUND 10 P.M., PEOPLE IN WESTERN GERMANY ARE EXPERIENCING THE HEIGHT OF THE FLOOD.

HUGE INUNDATIONS IN THE STATES OF RHINELAND-PALATINATE AND NORTH RHINE-WESTFALIA.

AT THE SAME TIME, ALSO IN NEIGHBORING BELGIUM.

[ALARM BLARING IN DISTANCE] [INDISTINCT CHATTER] [SOMBER INSTRUMENTAL] [NARRATOR].NEAR ALTENAHR, MATERNUS GASPER OWNS A BAKERY.

[NARRATOR].GASPER HAS ALSO FILMED HOW THE WATER ROSE EARLY THAT EVENING.

JUST A FEW HOURS LATER, HE IS STRUGGLING TO SURVIVE.

HE, HIS WIFE GABI AND HIS BROTHER PETER FLEE TO THE UPPER FLOOR OF HIS BAKERY.

[TENSE MUSIC] [NARRATOR].

BUT THE GASPERS ARE LUCKY.

THEIR NEIGHBOR HAS SOMETHING THAT IN THIS SITUATION IS WORTH ITS WEIGHT IN GOLD: A CANOE.

THEO FRISCH IS A SOLDIER IN THE GERMAN ARMY.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER] [NARRATOR].THAT EVENING, HE BRINGS SEVERAL NEIGHBORS TO SAFETY INTO THE VINEYARDS WITH HIS CANOE.

THEN HE HEARS THE GASPER FAMILY SHOUTING.

[NARRATOR].THEO FIGHTS HIS WAY THROUGH THE TORRENT TO RESCUE THE GASPERS.

BUT ONLY GABI AND PETER FIT IN THE CANOE; MATERNUS REMAINS IN THE ATTIC.

BUT THEN THE CANOE CAPSIZES.

[NARRATOR].WITH HIS LAST OUNCE OF STRENGTH, THEO PULLS PETER AND GABI OUT OF THE WATER.

THEY MANAGE TO CLIMB ONTO THIS ROOF AND THEY SPEND ALL NIGHT SITTING ON THE RIDGE.

MATERNUS ALSO SURVIVES IN THE ATTIC OF HIS HOUSE.

THAT NIGHT, THEO FRISCH RESCUES SEVEN PEOPLE WITH HIS CANOE.

A COUPLE OF MONTHS LATER, HE RECEIVES AN ARMY MEDAL FOR THIS.

[NARRATOR].AND HE MEETS THE GASPER FAMILY AGAIN FOR THE FIRST TIME.

[NARRATOR].NOT EVERYONE HERE IS LUCKY ENOUGH TO HAVE A CANOE AND A TRAINED LIFESAVER IN THEIR NEIGHBORHOOD TODAY.

[TENSE BEAT] [NARRATOR].ONE REASON FOR HEAVY RAIN IS SIMPLE PHYSICS: WARMER AIR STORES MORE MOISTURE.

BUT THERE'S ANOTHER REASON: WEATHER MOVES MORE SLOWLY.

RAIN STAYS IN ONE PLACE FOR LONGER.

[NARRATOR].

BUT WHY IS THAT?

CLIMATE RESEARCHERS HAVE A SUSPICION.

[NARRATOR].

THE JET STREAM, THE AIR CURRENT THAT BLOWS CONSTANTLY FROM WEST TO EAST IN THE NORTHERN HEMISPHERE.

IT OCCURS WHERE THE COLD AIR FROM THE ARCTIC MEETS THE WARM AIR FROM THE EQUATOR.

STUDIES SHOW THAT IT HAS WEAKENED.

WHAT SEEMS TO BE HAPPENING WITH SOMETHING CALLED ARCTIC AMPLIFICATION.

SO, THAT'S WHERE WE'RE GETTING AN INCREASED RATE OF WARMING AT THE POLES COMPARED TO THE EQUATOR.

BUT IF THE NORTH POLE IS WARMING FASTER THAN THE EQUATOR, THAT TEMPERATURE DIFFERENCE IS DECREASING.

AND IT'S THAT TEMPERATURE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN THE EQUATOR AND THE POLES THAT ACTUALLY DRIVES THINGS LIKE THE JET STREAM AND ACTUALLY CAUSES IT TO BECOME SLOWER AND WEAKER.

[NARRATOR].

THE SLOWER THE JET STREAM, SO THE THEORY GOES, THE LONGER THE RAIN STAYS IN ONE PLACE.

AND AS IT BECOMES WEAKER, IT CAN ALSO BECOME MORE WAVY WHICH CAN TRAP THESE HIGH AND LOW PRESSURE SENSORS IN ONE PLACE FOR LONGER AS WELL SO THEY BECOME MORE STATIONARY.

[NARRATOR].PERMANENT RAIN OR PERMANENT HEAT, DEPENDING ON WHICH WEATHER GETS STUCK IN THE JET STREAM.

THIS COULD ALSO BE A POSSIBLE EXPLANATION FOR THE WILDFIRES IN NORTH AMERICA.

[NARRATOR].HOWEVER, WHETHER THE WEAKER JET STREAM IS RELATED TO CLIMATE CHANGE OR WHETHER IT FLUCTUATES NATURALLY HAS NOT BEEN CONCLUSIVELY PROVEN.

10:30 P.M. ON THE EVENING OF JULY THE 14TH.

THE FLOOD REACHES BAD NEUENAHR, THE LARGEST TOWN ON THE AHR.

30,000 PEOPLE, AND HARDLY ANYONE KNOWS WHAT IS COMING.

[OMINOUS INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].

WALBURGA SüNNEN LIVES IN THIS APARTMENT WITH A DIRECT VIEW ONTO THE RIVER.

THE OWNER OF A BOUTIQUE, SHE WAS ATTRACTED TO THE FASHIONABLE SPA TOWN, AND CHOSE TO MOVE TO THIS TOWN A COUPLE OF YEARS AGO.

[NARRATOR].

YET, THIS VIEW IS ANYTHING BUT PRETTY.

WALBURGA SüNNEN FILMS IT.

[NARRATOR].

PICTURES FROM THE DAYS AFTER SHOW THE REMAINS OF THE MASSIVE CONCRETE BRIDGE IN THE RIVER.

JULIAN DELA LIVES IN THE OUTSKIRTS OF TOWN WITH HIS WIFE AND DAUGHTER LEYLA.

[NARRATOR].THEY USE THIS LADDER TO SAVE THEMSELVES AND CLIMB UP TO THE ROOF.

ALSO WITH THEM ARE THE FAMILY'S CHIHUAHUA AND THEIR TWO-YEAR-OLD DAUGHTER, WRAPPED IN A BLANKET HELD BY HER MOTHER.

[NARRATOR].AND WHAT ABOUT FIREFIGHTER FRIEDHELM JAKOBS, WHO SHORTLY BEFORE TRIED TO WARN THE PEOPLE IN HIS TOWN?

DRONE FOOTAGE SHOWS THE WATER TAKING OVER THE FIRE STATION AS WELL - TO THE LEFT IN THIS IMAGE.

THE WATER WASHESFRIEDHELM JAKOBS AND A COLLEAGUE ONTO THE CEMETERY, WHERE THEY HOLD TIGHT TO THIS TREE.

[NARRATOR].THEN, HE CAN'T HOLD ON ANY LONGER.

[NARRATOR].HE MANAGES TO GRAB HOLD AGAIN TO A CROSS ON A GRAVESTONE.

[NARRATOR].

WET AN COLD, FRIEDHELM JAKOBS WILL HOD ONTO THE CROSS WITH HIS LAST STRENGTH FOR HOURS.

[NARRATOR].

ONLY NOW, AT 11:15 P.M., DOES THE DISTRICT DECLARE A FORMAL STATE OF EMERGENCY.

IF THIS HAD HAPPENED HOURS EARLIER, MORE LIVES COULD'VE BEEN SAVED.

NOW, PEOPLE EXPERIENCE THE CATASTROPHE FIRSTHAND, IT IS ABOUT SURVIVAL NOW.

EVERYWHERE, PEOPLE ARE SITTING ON THE ROOFS OF THEIR HOUSES.

INCLUDING REBECCA ARNOLDY-HEIMANSFELD IN DERNAU.

[NARRATOR].

JULIAN DELA AND HIS FAMILY ARE STILL ON THEIR ROOF.

[NARRATOR].

THE NEIGHBORS ARE FOUND LATER.

THEY DID NOT SURVIVE.

[TENSE INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].

AND OLIVER GRIESS, THE MAN WHO WAS SWEPT FROM HIS DESTROYED HOUSE?

HE WASHED UP AGAINST THIS TREE AS HE FLOATED IN THE FLOODS.

[NARRATOR].HE DOESN'T YET KNOWWHAT HAS HAPPENED TO HIS PARTNER AND THE NEIGHBORS.

[NARRATOR].DURING THAT NIGHT, MANY PEOPLE ARE LEFT ALONE IN THE DARK AND WITH THEIR UNCERTAINTY.

IN ADDITION TO WARMER AIR AND THE JET STREAM, THERE'S A THIRD REASON WHY EXTREME WEATHER HAS BECOME MORE LIKELY: THE WARMING OF THE OCEANS.

[NARRATOR].AND WARMER OCEANS ALSO CAUSE MORE ICE TO MELT AT THE POLES... MAKING THE SEA LEVEL RISE.

THE RESULT IS AN INCREASING NUMBER OF FLOODS ALONG THE COASTS.

WARMER OCEANS COULD ALSO BE RESPONSIBLE FOR HEATWAVES C AND FOREST FIRES ON LAND.

COMPLICATED LINKS EXIST BETWEEN OCEAN TEMPERATURES AND WEATHER EVENTS.

FOR INSTANCE, THERE IS A SO-CALLED DIPOLE OVER THE INDIAN OCEAN, WHICH INFLUENCES THE WEATHER IN AFRICA AND AUSTRALIA.

THIS IS ACTUALLY A NATURAL PHENOMENON: VARYING TEMPERATURES IN THE EASTERN AND WESTERN INDIAN OCEAN SUDDENLY REVERSE EVERY COUPLE OF YEARS, WITH CURIOUS RESULTS.

IT RAINSIN THE WESTERN PART OF THE OCEAN WHEN IT'S WARMER THERE, WHILE IN THE EAST, IN AUSTRALIA, THERE ARE INCREASING PERIODS OF DROUGHT.

THREE YEARS AGO, THERE WERE THE BIG FIRES IN AUSTRALIA.

AND THOSE HAPPENED IN A MOMENT IN WHICH THIS DIPOLE WAS DECREASING RAINFALL OVER AUSTRALIA AND HENCE THE LAND WAS DRIER.

SO IT FAVORED THE FIRES.

[NARRATOR].

DUE TO GLOBAL WARMING, THE DIPOLE COULD LEAD TO EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS THREE TIMES MORE FREQUENTLY.

[NARRATOR].SO THERE ARE MORE DROUGHTS IN SOME REGIONS, WHILE WORLDWIDE, THERE IS MORE HEAVY RAIN WITH DEVASTATING CONSEQUENCES, LIKE ON THE AHR.

AT 2:30 A.M., THE FLOOD WAVE REACHES THE TOWN OF SINZIG.

THERE IS THE "LEBENSHILFE-HAUS", A HOME FOR DISABLED PEOPLE, ABOUT 200 METERS FROM THE STREAM.

NO ONE EXPECTS THE WATER TO COME UP THIS FAR.

ULRICH MARTIN, WHO LIVES RIGHT NEXT TO THIS HOME, LIVES THROUGH THE EVENTS OF JULY 15.

21 PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES LIVE AT THE PLACE.

[NARRATOR].

ONLY ONE AIDE WORKSTHE NIGHT SHIFT ON THE PREMISES.

HE BRINGS THE RESIDENTS OF ANOTHER HOUSE TO SAFETY...

BUT THEN THE WATER CUTS OFF HIS WAY BACK.

[SLOW INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].TWELVE PEOPLE DROWN IN THE "LEBENSHILFE-HAUS" BECAUSE THEY CANNOT MAKE IT TO THE UPPER FLOORS ON THEIR OWN, BECAUSE THE AUTHORITIES FAIL TO CARRY OUT A LARGE-SCALE EVACUATION.

I WORK IN COUNTRIES LIKE MOZAMBIQUE AND UGANDA.

AND FLOODS ARE DEVASTATING AND THEY DO WASH PEOPLE'S HOUSES AWAY.

THERE'S NO WAY I EXPECTED TO SEE THIS KIND OF THING IN GERMANY.

MY IMAGE OF GERMANY IS THAT YOU HAVE THINGS TOGETHER AND YOU HAVE THE TECHNOLOGY IN PLACE TO KEEP PEOPLE SAFE.

BUT OBVIOUSLY, IN THIS CASE, THAT WAS NOT TRUE.

[NARRATOR].THE AHR VALLEY IN THE MIDDLE OF GERMANY, A WEALTHY FIRST-WORLD NATION.

HOW WAS THE FLOOD SO DEVASTATING HERE IN PARTICULAR?

CLIMATE CHANGE HAS INCREASED THE LIKELIHOOD OF EXTREME RAINFALL.

AND YET, THIS IS ONLY PART OF THE EXPLANATION.

THERE ARE ALWAYS LOCAL FACTORS THAT CAUSE EXTREME WEATHER TO TURN INTO A DISASTER.

THIS IS WHAT GEOGRAPHERS FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF BONN WANT TO INVESTIGATE.

JüRGEN H. AND THOMAS R. WANT TO FIND OUT HOW MUCH WATER REALLY SWEPT THROUGH THE VALLEY THAT NIGHT.

BUT THEY'RE FACED WITH A PROBLEM: THERE IS HARDLY ANY DATA AVAILABLE.

SOME OF THE WATER GAUGES WERE SWEPT AWAY AND NOBODY KNOWS HOW HIGH THE WATER CAME.

[NARRATOR].

IT'S DIFFICULT OUTSIDE THE TOWNS.

BUT THERE ARE INDIRECT WAYS OF DETERMINING THE ACTUAL WATER LEVEL.

[NARRATOR].

NONETHELESS, IT'S A HINT, SO THAT THEY CAN GRADUALLY CALCULATE HOW MUCH WATER REALLY FLOWED THROUGH THE VALLEY DURING THE FLOOD.

THIS IS IMPORTANT TO FIND OUT SO THEY CAN DETERMINE WHETHER THIS REALLY WAS AN UNPRECEDENTED EVENT OR WHETHER THERE HAVE BEEN FLOODS LIKE THIS BEFORE.

ONE THING IS ALREADY CLEAR: THE VALLEY'S SPECIFIC SHAPE MAKE THE CATASTROPHE WORSE.

[NARRATOR].

THE STATE OF COLORADO IN 1976.

DEVASTATING FLOODS DO OCCUR IN NARROW VALLEYS TIME AND AGAIN.

FOR EXAMPLE, ON THE BIG THOMPSON RIVER.

IN JUST A FEW HOURS, 300 LITERS OF RAIN, THAT IS ABOUT TWO BATHTUBS PER SQUARE METER, FELL IN JUST A FEW HOURS.

THE WATER DOES NOT SEEP AWAY ON THE SLOPES.

A FLOOD WAVE FORMS IN THE VALLEY, HOUSES AND ROADS ARE SWEPT AWAY.

144 PEOPLE DIE.

REPORTS FROM EYEWITNESSES SOUND EERILY SIMILAR TO THE ONES YEARS LATER ON THE AHR RIVER.

YOU COULD HEAR THAT TERRIBLE CRUNCHING AND GRINDING OF, FIRST OF ALL, TIMBER.

AND THEN WITHIN A VERY FEW MINUTES, THE HOUSES JUST STARTED TO DISAPPEAR, FLOAT DOWN THE RIVER.

[NARRATOR].

SOME CONSERVATIONISTS BELIEVE THAT THE INTENSIVE AGRICULTURE IN THE AHR VALLEY HAS MADE THE FLOOD WORSE.

THEY POINT TO STRAIGHT ROWS OF VINES.

THESE ARE LAID OUT WIDE, SO THEY CAN BE HARVESTED BY MACHINES.

DID THOSE ROWS CHANNEL THE WATER FASTER INTO THE VALLEYS DURING THE RAIN?

2014 IN GREAT BRITAIN.

THE RESULTS OF INTENSIVE AGRICULTURE CAN BE SEEN IN SOMERSET, ENGLAND.

AFTER HEAVY RAINS, MORE THAN 600 HOUSES ARE FLOODED HERE.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER] WE'VE BEEN CUT OFF ABOUT A WEEK NOW.

BEFORE THAT, YOU COULD PROBABLY PASS WITH TRACTORS OR WADE THROUGH, BUT...

IT'S REALLY BAD THIS YEAR.

[NARRATOR].

THE PROBLEM?

OVER THE YEARS, MORE AND MORE CORN HAS BEEN GROWN HERE.

BUT THIS HAS DAMAGED THE SOIL TO SUCH AN EXTENT THAT WATER CAN NO LONGER SEEP INTO THE UPPER SOIL LAYERS.

THIS MAKES THE FLOODINGS WORSE.

STRAIGHTENED RIVERS WITH FAST-FLOWING WATER ARE ALSO SUSPECTED OF WORSENING FLOODS.

WHILE STREAMS OFTEN MEANDER LEISURELY, MANY RIVERS WERE STRAIGHTENED DECADES AGO TO MAKE ROOM FOR AGRICULTURE AND CONSTRUCTION.

[NARRATOR].

SOUTHERN FRANCE, FALL 2020.

DEVASTATING FLOODING HERE AS WELL.

[NARRATOR].

STRAIGHTENED RIVERS, VINE ROWS, DRY SOIL.

DID ALL THESE FACTORS ALSO PLAY A ROLE IN THE AHR VALLEY?

THE RESEARCHERS FROM BONN ARE SCEPTICAL.

[NARRATOR].BUT WAS IT MORE WATER THAN EVER BEFORE?

THE RESEARCHERS MAY YET FIND A SURPRISING ANSWER.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER IN GERMAN] [NARRATOR].

JULY 15, 2021.

THE MORNING AFTER.

THE WATER IS SLOWLY RECEDING.

[NARRATOR].ONLY NOW DOES A LARGE-SCALE RESCUE GET UNDER WAY.

DOZENS OF RESCUE HELICOPTERS PULL PEOPLE ON BOARD.

THEY HAVE HELD OUT ALL NIGHT ON THE ROOFS OF THEIR HOUSES.

REBECCA ARNOLDY-HEIMANSFELD IS ALSO FLOWN OUT BY THE RESCUERS.

[NARRATOR].UP IN THE VINEYARD, REBECCA IS FINALLY REUNITED WITH HER HUSBAND WHO WORKED ALL NIGHT FOR THE FIRE DEPARTMENT.

[NARRATOR].

FIREFIGHTER, FRIEDHELM JAKOBS, WHO HELD ONTO THIS STONE CROSS IN THE CEMETERY ALL NIGHT, IS ALSO RESCUED.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER] [NARRATOR].

THESE ARE THE MEN WHO RESCUED HIM.

MONTHS LATER, HE MEETS UP WITH THEM AGAIN FOR THE FIRST TIME.

THEY ARE FELLOW FIREFIGHTERS FROM BONN.

THEY MANAGED TO GET THROUGH TO FRIEDHELM JAKOBS ON THE MORNING OF JULY 15 WITH THIS SPECIAL VEHICLE.

WHEN THEY PICKED HIM UPFROM THE CEMETERY THAT MORNING, HE WAS COMPLETELY EXHAUSTED.

[NARRATOR].FRIEDHELM JAKOBS WANTS TO SAY THANK YOU AND HAS PREPARED SOMETHING FOR HIS RESCUERS: A CAKE, SHAPED LIKE THE VEHICLE THEY USED TO SAVE HIM.

[SOFT PIANO INSTRUMENTAL] [NARRATOR].

AND OLIVER GRIESS?

HE HELD OUT FOR 15 HOURS AT THE LINDEN TREE IN INSUL.

HE INJURED HIS FOOT DURING THE NIGHT.

A PHOTO SHOWS HIM IN THE MORNING, HUDDLED IN THE RIVERAND DRESSED ONLY IN A BATHROBE.

A HELICOPTER IS COMING.

[NARRATOR].

THE GREATEST RELIEF OF ALL: THE NEIGHBORS AND HIS PARTNERALSO MANAGED TO SAVE THEMSELVES.

[NARRATOR].THE RIVER VALLEY THAT USED TO BE SO IDYLLIC.

THE MORNING AFTER.

[SOMBER INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].THE HOUSE WHERE OLIVER GRIESS USED TO LIVE, IT STOOD SOMEWHERE HERE.

NOW, MONTHS LATER, THERE IS NO TRACE LEFT OF IT.

[MUSIC FADES] [NARRATOR].

FLOODS ARE NOTHING NEW FOR THE PEOPLE LIVING ALONG THE AHR.

IT HAS BEEN FLOODED TIME AND AGAIN.

THE ONLY DIFFERENCE IS THAT THOSE FLOODS CAUSED MUCH LESS DAMAGE.

HOW UNIQUE WAS THE FLOOD OF 2021?

THAT'S WHAT GEOGRAPHERS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF BONN ARE TRYING TO DETERMINE.

IN THEIR STUDY,THEY FIND SOMETHING SURPRISING.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER] [NARRATOR].

IN 1804, 1,200 CUBIC METERS, THAT IS 1.2 MILLION LITERS OF WATER PER SECOND, FLOWED THROUGH THE VALLEY.

JUST LIKE IN 2021, IT WAS NOT AN UNPRECEDENTED EVENT AT ALL.

BUT WHY DID THE WATER RISE SO MUCH HIGHER?

IT CAN BE SEEN QUITE CLEARLY AT THIS HOUSE: THE LEVELS OF 1804 AND OF 2021.

WHERE DOES THE DIFFERENCE COME FROM IF THE AMOUNT OF WATER WAS THE SAME?

[NARRATOR].

THE WATER ROSE HIGHER DUE TO THE DISPLACEMENT EFFECT OF THE SETTLEMENTS.

ON THE LEFT: FLOODING IN A BARELY POPULATED AREA.

ON THE RIGHT: THE SAME AMOUNT OF WATER IN A DENSELY POPULATED AREA.

[NARRATOR].AND THERE'S ANOTHER DECISIVE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN 1804 AND 2021.

IT ALSO HAS TO DO WITH DENSE SETTLEMENT.

[NARRATOR].

THE WATER ROSE HIGHER BECAUSE OF THE FLOOD DEBRIS.

AS THE BRIDGES CRUMBLED, VERITABLE WAVES FLOODED THE VILLAGES.

[NARRATOR].HUMAN INTERVENTION PROMOTED THE CATASTROPHE.

THE QUESTION REMAINS: SHOULD PEOPLE HAVE EVEN BEEN PERMITTED TO BUILD THEIR HOUSES IN THE VALLEY?

[SOFT MUSIC] [NARRATOR].THE ANCIENT ROMANS ALREADY KNEW THAT ONE SHOULD NOT SETTLE DOWN BY THE RIVER.

EXCAVATIONS IN BAD NEUENAHR FROM 1980 BROUGHT THIS OLD ROMAN VILLA TO THE SURFACE.

IT WAS BUILT ABOUT 20 METERS ABOVE RIVER LEVEL.

NO OTHER EVIDENCE OF SETTLEMENTS WAS FOUND AT LOWER LEVELS.

THERE ARE ALSO REMAINS OF A ROMAN VILLA NEAR SCHULD THAT ARE ALSO SOME DISTANCE ABOVE THE RIVER.

[NARRATOR].THE FACT THAT PEOPLE HAD FORGOTTEN THIS LESSON AND BUILT HOMES MUCH LOWER AND CLOSER TO THE RIVER MADE THE CATASTROPHE WORSE.

NEWLY BUILT HOUSING AREAS ALONG THE COURSE OF THE AHR WERE PARTICULARLY AFFECTED.

FOR EXAMPLE HERE, IN THE DISTRICT OF HEPPINGEN IN BAD NEUENAHR.

[TENSE BEAT] [NARRATOR].

SETTLED AND SEALED.

JUST SIX DAYS AFTER THE FLOOD AT THE AHR, HEAVY RAINFALL CAUSE FLOODINGIN THE HENAN PROVINCE F CHINA.

IT SHOWS JUST HO FATALLYFLOODS CAN RAGE IN URBAN AREAS.

A THOUSAND PEOPLE ARE TRAPPED IN THE ZHENGZHOU SUBWAY.

FOURTEEN DROWN.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER IN MANDARIN] [NARRATOR].IN EARLY SEPTEMBER, HURRICANE IDA HITS NEW YORK CITY.

WATER RISES IN THE STREETS.

BASEMENT APARTMENTS ARE FLOODED.

SIXTEEN PEOPLE DIE.

CLIMATE SCIENTIST ALEX RUANE OF NASA'S INSTITUTE FOR SPACE STUDIES IN NEW YORK EXPERIENCED THE FLOOD FIRSTHAND AT THE TIME.

HE BELIEVES THAT FLOODS WILL GET WORSE DUE TO SOIL SEALING.

CONCRETE AND CEMENT, OF COURSE, IS VERY IMPERMEABLE.

WATER TENDS TO POOL AND RUN OFF VERY RAPIDLY.

AND WHEN YOU HAVE MORE URBAN SPRAWL, WHEN YOU HAVE MORE BUILT UP CONSTRUCTION, NOT JUST IN URBAN AREAS, BUT THINGS LIKE PARKING LOTS AND ROADWAYS, THAT LEADS TO A HIGHER PERCENTAGE OF RAINFALL RUNNING ACROSS THE SURFACE, GETTING INTO OUR SEWER SYSTEMS, AND LEADING TO HIGHER LEVELS OF FLOODING.

[NARRATOR].

WHEN THE WATER RECEDES IN THE MORNING, THE HUGE DEVASTATION BECOMES VISIBLE.

IN THE STATES OF RHINELAND-PALATINATE AND NORTH RHINE-WESTFALIA, IN BELGIUM... SUNKEN CARS.

IN SOME OF THEM, THE RESCUERS FIND ONLY LIFELESS BODIES.

THICK, TOXIC MUD EVERYWHERE, MIXED WITH HEATING OIL.

HOUSES TORN AWAY.

ROADS DESTROYED.

THE RE-INSURANCE COMPANY, MUNICH RE, ESTIMATESTHAT THE FLOOD IN GERMANY ALONE WILL TOTAL 30 BILLION EUROS.

[SOMBER INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].MATERNUS GASPER'S BAKERY AND HOUSE ARE RUINED.

EVERYTHING HAS TO BE TORN DOWN.

[INSTRUMENTAL CONTINUES] [NARRATOR].REBECCA'S APARTMENT IS DESTROYED.

[NARRATOR].WALBURGA SüNNEN WALKS THROUGH THE STREETS OF BAD NEUENAHR AND FILMS WHAT IS LEFT OF HER BOUTIQUE.

[NARRATOR].HER GALLOWS HUMOR HAS STAYED WITH HER.

[NARRATOR].AT THE WINEGROWERS' COOPERATIVE IN MAYSCHOSS, ALINA SONNTAG AND HER COLLEAGUES RECOVER WINE BOTTLES FROM THE CELLAR.

[SOMBER INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].

NOT MUCH IS LEFTOF WHAT THEY USED TO CALL HOME.

[NARRATOR].THE BIG QUESTION THE PEOPLE HERE ARE FACED WITH IS: TO REBUILD OR NOT TO REBUILD?

JUST AS IT USED TO BE?

MOST PEOPLE KNOW THAT THINGS WILL NEVER BE THE SAME AGAIN.

[INDISTINCT CHATTER IN GERMAN] [NARRATOR].

WALBURGA SüNNEN'S FRIENDS USED TO ENVY HER FOR THE PLACE WHERE SHE LIVED.

[NARRATOR].JULIAN DELA MOVED AWAY FROM HEPPINGEN.

THE FAMILY COULD NO LONGER STAY IN THEIR OLD APARTMENT.

[NARRATOR].OTHERS WANT EVERYTHING TO BE THE WAY IT USED TO BE.

[NARRATOR].

BUT IS IT REALLY SMART TO REBUILD EVERYTHING IN THE SAME WAY?

THE STATE OF RHINELAND-PALATINATE DREW UP NEW RISK MAPS IN OCTOBER.

PEOPLE MAY NO LONGER CONSTRUCT BUILDINGS IN A YELLOW ZONE RIGHT BY THE RIVER.

THIS ONLY AFFECTS VERY FEW HOUSES.

FLOOD AREAS ARE MARKED IN A BLUE ZONE: THESE INCLUDE LARGE PARTS OF THE COMMUNITIES.

RECONSTRUCTION IS PERMITTED THERE.

BUT IS THIS A GOOD IDEA?

[OMINOUS INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [HANNAH].

IF IT'S YOUR HOME, YOU NEED THAT HOME TO FEEL SAFE.

IT NEEDS TO BE A PLACE OF SAFETY FOR YOU AND YOUR FAMILY.

IF YOU BUILD BACK THE SAME AS IT WAS BEFORE, YOU ARE AT EXACTLY THE SAME RISK OR PERHAPS EVEN WORSE RISK FROM FUTURE FLOODS.

[NARRATOR].

WHAT SHOULD BE DONE?

BUILD HIGH DAMS THROUGHOUT THE VALLEY, FOR A LOT OF MONEY, TO PROTECT THE VILLAGES?

AND WHAT IF THE NEXT FLOOD HITS THE NEXT VALLEY OVER?

PERHAPS LESSONS CAN BE LEARNED FROM A COUNTRY THAT HAS LIVED FOR CENTURIES WITH THE THREAT OF FLOODS: THE NETHERLANDS.

WHEREAS MANY PEOPLE DIED IN GERMANY AND BELGIUM IN THE SUMMER FLOOD OF 2021, THE DUTCH ESCAPED RELATIVELY UNHARMED.

NOBODY DIED.

CITIES LIKE VALKENBURG WERE FLOODED, BUT THERE WERE MANY PLACES WHERE THE WATER COULDN'T GET BEYOND THE TOPS OF THE DIKES.

ALTHOUGH IT WAS THE HIGHEST FLOOD RECORDED AND THE PEAK WAS HIGHER THAN EVER WITNESSED BEFORE, EVERYTHING WAS SAFE FROM THE RIVER.

[SOFT INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].

PETER GLAS CAN EXPLAIN WHY.

HE IS THE DELTA COMMISSIONER, A POSITION THAT EXISTS ONLY IN THE NETHERLANDS.

HIS TASK ISTO MAKE THE COUNTRY FLOOD-PROOF IN THE FACE OF GLOBAL WARMING.

HE HAS OVER ONE BILLION EUROS AT HIS DISPOSAL PER YEAR.

THIS MEANS BUILDING MORE WALLS AND MORE DIKES.

IN OTHER PLACES, RIVERS GET MORE SPACE, FOR INSTANCE, BY DEEPENING CANALS OR LOWERING FLOOD AREAS.

THE PROGRAM IS CALLED "SPACE FOR THE RIVER."

IT MADE A DIFFERENCE.

THE PEAK OF THE FLOOD OF JULY WAS LOWERED BY MORE THAN 30CM NEAR THE CITIES OF VENLO AND ROARMOND.

SO THEY WERE SAVED, ACTUALLY, BECAUSE WE DID THESE PROJECTS AND THEY WORKED.

[NARRATOR].YET, WHEN THE WATER GETS MORE SPACE, SOMEONE ELSE SUFFERS: SOME FARMERS HAVE TO GIVE UP THEIR PLACES.

WHEREVER POSSIBLE, THIS IS DONE IN A SOCIALLY VIABLE WAY.

HERE, A NUMBER OF FARMERS HAD TO GIVE UP THEIR FARMS, BUT THEY RECEIVED COMPENSATION AND THEY COULD REBUILD ON LOCATIONS WHICH ARE SITUATED ON A HIGHER GROUNDLEVEL.

WHERE WE ARE NOW, IN THE OVERDIEPSE POULDER IS AN EXAMPLE WHERE WE ACTUALLY SACRIFICED HOUSES.

THEIR HOUSES WERE REPLACED BY NEW HOUSES THAT ARE HERE IN THE BACK ON MOUNTS NEAR THE DIKE THERE.

AND SO WHEN THIS IS A RETENTION AREA EVERY 25 YEARS, STATISTICALLY THIS FLOODS, THEN THE HOUSES ARE SAFE.

AND WHEN THERE'S WATER ON THE LAND, THEN THE FARMER IS COMPENSATED FOR HIS LOSS OF THE CROP.

[NARRATOR].THE NETHERLANDS HAVE DEVELOPED MANY WAYS TO MANAGE THE WATER, FOR EXAMPLE THESE HOUSES NEAR ROERMOND.

THEY ARE BUILTON FLOATING CONCRETE STRUCTURES.

PERRY HOUKES, THE OWNER OF THE SITE, EXPLAINS THAT THIS IS A COMPLICATED BUT EFFECTIVE CONSTRUCTION.

[NARRATOR].

AND IT WORKED.

DURING THE JULY 2021 FLOOD, THE NEARBY CAMPSITE WAS FLOODED WHILE THE VACATION HOMES ON THEIR CONCRETE SLABS FLOATED UP AND REMAINED DRY.

[NARRATOR].DUTCH EXPERTISE IS IN DEMAND WORLDWIDE, INCLUDING THE USA.

WHEN HURRICANES KATRINA AND RITA HIT NEW ORLEANS IN QUICK SUCCESSION THE SUMMER OF 2005, NEARLY 2,000 PEOPLE DIED.

AS THE WATER RECEDED, PEOPLE ASKED THEMSELVES HOW RECONSTRUCTION COULD LOOK LIKE.

AT FIRST, THE DAMS WERE REPAIRED AND STRENGTHENED.

BUT IN THE LONG TERM, OTHER SOLUTIONS WERE NEEDED.

EVEN HIGHER DAMS WILL NOT PROTECT THE CITY FOREVER AS SEA LEVELS RISE.

THE CITY INVITED EXPERTS FROM THE NETHERLANDS TO HELP.

[PETER].

A LOT OF DUTCH EXPERTS WENT THERE AND ALSO GOVERNMENT OFFICIALS AND THEY WERE CALLED IN.

ALSO BECAUSE OF THE EXPERIENCE THAT WE HAVE IN THIS COUNTRY, IN THIS DELTA, WHICH, IN A WAY, IS COMPARABLE TO THE NEW ORLEANS SITUATION.

[NARRATOR].THE IDEA: THE URBAN WATER PLAN.

THE GOAL IS NOT TO KEEP WATER OUT OF THE CITY AT ALL COSTS BUT RATHER TO CREATE DEDICATED FLOOD PLANES, PLACES THAT CAN BE TEMPORARILY SACRIFICED TO THE WATER.

CAN THOSE IDEAS BE IMPLEMENTED ON THE AHR?

APPROACH CONSTRUCTION DIFFERENTLY?

OR GIVE UP ENTIRE VILLAGES?

WILL THE LOCALS ACCEPT THAT?

THERE ARE OTHER IDEAS AS WELL.

A GERMAN-DUTCH ENGINEERING OFFICE IN COLOGNE HAS DEVELOPED THE CONCEPT OF A "SPONGE CITY."

[NARRATOR].

FOR INSTANCE, THEY ARE PLANNING GIANT FLOOD AREAS IN THE CITY OF MAASTRICHT.

BUT HOW WILL THAT WORK?

AS THERE ARE ALREADY BUILDINGS THERE.

THE PLANNERS ESTIMATE HOW LONG THESE BUILDINGS WILL BE USED.

RESIDENTIAL HOUSES PERHAPS 50 MORE YEARS AND INDUSTRIAL AREAS, MAYBE 25.

ONLY THEN WILL THEY BE CONVERTED OR TORN DOWN.

[NARRATOR].THERE ARE ALSO IDEAS THAT CAN BE IMPLEMENTED IMMEDIATELY.

SINCE THERE IS NOT MUCH ROOM IN OUR CITIES, EXISTING STRUCTURES CAN BE REDESIGNED AS FLOOD AREAS.

FOR EXAMPLE, A PARK CAN BE LOWERED, SO IT WILL STORE MUCH MORE WATER THAN BEFORE.

[NARRATOR].BOTH ARE PUSHING FOR RAPID PLANNING.

CLIMATE CHANGE IS NOT GOING TO WAIT.

[NARRATOR].RIGHT NOW, THE TERRIBLE FLOOD ON THE AHR IS STILL IN EVERYONE'S MIND.

BUT WHEN WILL THE POLITICAL WILL TO REBUILD DIFFERENTLY FADE?

[NARRATOR].

FLOOD AMNESIA.

THE MEMORY OF THE DISASTER IS FLEETING, AND THOSE WHO DO NOT REMEMBER WILL NOT TAKE WARNINGS SERIOUSLY IN THE FUTURE.

THUS, MENTAL PREPARATION IS AT LEAST AS IMPORTANT AS PROPER RECONSTRUCTION.

I SUPPOSE PART OF THAT IS EDUCATING THE PUBLIC TO UNDERSTAND THAT THESE EVENTS CAN HAPPEN, EVEN IF THEY HAVEN'T HAPPENED IN 50 OR 100 YEARS.

THEY CAN ACTUALLY HAPPEN, THEY CAN BE REALLY SIGNIFICANT, THEY CAN CAUSE LOSS OF LIFE.

THEY CAN BE VERY RAPID.

[TENSE BEAT] [NARRATOR].HOW PEOPLE ASSESS THE RISKS OF A FLOOD DETERMINES THEIR CHANCES OF SURVIVAL.

THIS IS EVIDENT IN REGIONS THAT ARE ALREADY EXPERIENCING NATURAL DISASTERS WITH INCREASING FREQUENCY.

TAKE BANGLADESH, FOR EXAMPLE.

IN 2019, A DEVASTATING CYCLONE HITS THE REGION.

ALTHOUGH SEVERAL MILLION PEOPLE ARE DIRECTLY AFFECTED IN BANGLADESH, ONLY 12 LOSE THEIR LIVES.

BY COMPARISON, MORE PEOPLE DIE IN THE AHR REGION: 134 DEATHS IN A POPULATION OF ONLY 130,000.

[ALEX].

IN THE DEVELOPED WORLD, IN MANY CASES, WE HAVE BUILT OUR LIFESTYLES AROUND AN EXPECTATION THAT WE CAN BE PROTECTED FROM SOME OF THE EXTREME EVENTS THAT ARE HAPPENING AROUND US.

HOWEVER, THAT MEANS IN THE DEVELOPED WORLD, WE ARE, IN MANY CASES, MORE SURPRISED WHEN THESE THINGS FAIL AND CAN LEAD US INTO SITUATIONS WHERE WE ARE NOT PREPARED FOR THE DISASTERS WHEN THEY OCCUR.

[NARRATOR].

COUNTRIES LIKE BANGLADESH MAY BE MORE RESILIENT BECAUSE SUCH DISASTERS HAPPEN THERE FREQUENTLY.

HOUSES ARE BUILT HIGHER, PEOPLE TAKE WARNINGS SERIOUSLY AND KNOW EXACTLY WHERE THE NEAREST SHELTER IS.

[NARRATOR].

TO BETTER PREPARE FOR FLOOD RISKS IS WHAT ONE NATION, THAT HAS ALSO HAD RECENT EXPERIENCES WITH NATURAL DISASTERS HAS BEEN DOING: JAPAN.

[SOMBER INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].

SINCE THE FUKUSHIMA TSUNAMI HIT THE COUNTRY HARD, THE JAPANESE HAVE BEEN ASKING THEMSELVES: HOW CAN WE REDUCE OUR VULNERABILITY?

THE CITY OF TOKYO IS RELYING ON TECHNOLOGY, A GIANT TUNNEL SYSTEM THAT IS MEANT TO DIVERT FLOOD WATERS.

[NARRATOR].HOWEVER, IT'S JUST AS IMPORTANT TO RAISE PEOPLE'S AWARENESS OF THE RISKS.

THIS IS WHY SCHOOLCHILDREN IN JAPAN ARE LEARNING WHAT TO DO IN THE EVENT OF FLOODING.

WITH THE HELP OF VIRTUAL REALITY GOGGLES, THEY ARE SHOWN HOW HIGH THE WATER CAN RISE IN THEIR CLASSROOMS AND WHAT THEY HAVE TO DO TO SAVE THEMSELVES.

[NARRATOR].

IF WARNINGS HAD BEEN SENT, IT WOULD'VE PREVENTED A GREAT DEAL OF MISERY ON THE AHR.

MANY THINGS NEED TO BE IMPROVED.

RESCUERSMUST BE INFORMED FASTER ONSITE, DEACTIVATED SIRENS MUST BE REACTIVATED, WARNINGS MUST BE SENT DIRECTLY TO CELL PHONES, AS HAS LONG HAPPENED IN OTHER PARTS OF THE WORLD.

[NARRATOR].

THERE ARE MANY REASONSFOR THE CATASTROPHE ON THE AHR: GEOGRAPHICAL FACTORS, MISTAKES OF THE PAST, SUCH AS SETTLING IN FLOOD PLANES, BUT ALSO MAN-MADE CLIMATE CHANGE, WHICH NO LONGER ALLOWS FOR SAFE PLACES.

[HALEY].

WE DO KNOW THAT THESE EVENTS WILL BECOME MORE INTENSE.

AND CERTAINLY, THE SUMMER OF 2021 WAS REALLY THE FIRST TIME THAT WE'VE SEEN A HUGE SET OF EXTREME EVENTS AROUND THE WORLD.

AND YOU COULD SEE THAT THEY WERE CONNECTED.

YOU SAW HEAT DOME EVENTS IN CANADA, AND THEN YOU GET MASSIVE FLOODING EVENTS IN GERMANY.

SO, IT'S NOT GOOD NEWS.

[NARRATOR].

AND YET SOME RESEARCHERS ARE OPTIMISTIC.

WHAT GIVES ME HOPE IS THE FACT THAT WE ARE ABLE TO BETTER UNDERSTAND ALL OF THESE CHALLENGES, AND I THINK INCREASINGLY COMMUNICATE TO THE WORLD THAT THESE CHALLENGES ARE COMING UNLESS ACTION IS TAKEN.

WE CAN ADAPT.

WE CAN ISSUE ALERTS AND LEARN BEHAVIORS.

AND THAT'S A MEASURE OF HOPE.

[NARRATOR].ONE YEAR AFTER THE FLOOD ON THE AHR.

OLIVER GRIESS AND HIS GIRLFRIEND ARE PLANNING TO REBUILD THEIR HOUSE, BUT IN A DIFFERENT LOCATION, FAR AWAY FROM THE RIVER.

[NARRATOR].HE IS STILL IN PAIN, BOTH PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL.

THE MEMORIES ARE ALWAYS THERE.

[NARRATOR].

JULIAN DELA IS WRITING A BOOK ABOUT THE DAY OF THE FLOOD.

HE IS COLLECTING THE STORIES OF THOSE WHO LOST EVERYTHING THAT NIGHT.

[SOMBER INSTRUMENTAL MUSIC] [NARRATOR].

REBECCA ARNOLDY-HEIMANSFELD HAS TURNED HER DESTROYED HOME INTO A WORK OF ART.

A SYMBOL TO SAY THANK YOU TO ALL THE PEOPLE WHO VOLUNTEERED TO HELP AFTER THE FLOOD.

[HOPEFUL INSTRUMENTAL] [NARRATOR].

AND ALINA SONNTAG?

SHE GOT MARRIED JUST TWO MONTHS AFTER THE FLOOD.

THE CEREMONY TOOK PLACE IN THE ROCHUS CHURCH, ONE OF THE FEW INTACT PLACES IN MAYSCHOSS.

[CHEERING AND APPLAUSE] [CAR HONKING] [NARRATOR].

LATER, SHE AND HER HUSBAND HOLD THEIR RECEPTION AT A VINERYTHAT HAD ALMOST BEEN DESTROYED.

[CAR HONKING] [SLOW PIANO INSTRUMENTAL] [NARRATOR].THE RECONSTRUCTION WILL PROBABLY TAKE YEARS.

AND THE WOUNDS, BOTH PHYSICAL AND EMOTIONAL, WILL TAKE EVEN LONGER TO HEAL.

GLOBAL WARMING WILL MAKE CATASTROPHIES LIKE THE ONE AT THE AHR MORE FREQUENT.

WE WILL HAVE TO LEARN HOW TO ADAPT TO THESE EXTREME EVENTS... ALL OVER THE WORLD.