At least 23 people killed by flooding in central Europe

The toll from the extreme weather unleashed by Storm Boris in central Europe rose to at least 23 people, as Czech police said they had found a fourth victim.

Since last week the storm has brought widespread flooding and torrential rain, with victims also in Austria, Poland and Romania.

Czech police spokesman Jakub Vincalek told AFP that eight people were still missing after the deluge.

The fourth Czech victim, a woman from the northeastern village of Kobylá nad Vidnavkou, had been missing since Sunday morning.

"Unfortunately the 70-year-old woman was found dead," regional police spokesman Libor Hejtman told AFP.

The CTK news agency said the woman was found caught in a fence near her house, which had been destroyed by the Vidnavka river.

The flooding - which tore down houses, disrupted road and railway traffic and caused power outages - has since receded, revealing extensive damage.

Volunteers and emergency personnel worked through the night to fortify the Polish city of Wrocław against approaching flood waters, while Hungary opened a dam as the prime minister warned a "crucial period" was approaching.

The worst floods to hit central Europe in at least two decades have left a trail of destruction from Romania to Poland, spreading mud and debris in towns, destroying bridges, submerging cars and leaving authorities and householders with a bill for damages that will run into billions of euros.

"A lot happened tonight," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk told a crisis meeting in Wrocław. "We will need urgent information...from those places that received high water."

Lines of people in Wrocław passed sandbags to fortify riverbanks and to protect buildings. Authorities expect waters to peak in Wrocław tomorrow.

The Polish defence ministry said more than 14,000 soldiers had been deployed to flood-hit regions, with the armed forces using helicopters to evacuate people and strengthen flood defences, while drones monitored the situation from above.

Towns to the south of Wrocław, such as Lewin Brzeski, have already felt the full might of the floods, forcing residents to wade through the streets in waist-high water or seek refuge on the roofs of the entrances to blocks of flats.

Polish Finance Minister Andrzej Domanski told the crisis meeting that 2 billion zlotys (€468m) in funds had been secured for dealing with the effects of the floods.

Mr Tusk said there had been reports of soaring prices for many products in flood-hit areas and he did not rule out the introduction of price controls.

He also said the government would pay instalments of the mortgages of people whose houses had been flooded for a year.

'Tragic hardships'

Pope Francis talked about the "tragic hardships" caused by the floods during his weekly general audience in St Peter's Square.

"I assure everyone of my closeness, praying especially for those who have lost their lives and their families."

In Hungary, authorities opened a dam in the country's northwest to channel water from the Lajta river into an emergency reservoir in a bid to protect the city of Mosonmagyaróvár.

The water was allowed to flow onto agricultural land.

In the capital Budapest, the Danube is still expected to peak around or slightly above 8.5 metres, likely on Friday or Saturday.

"Due to heavy rains and floods, the situation is critical all across Central Europe," Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said in a post on social media platform X, formerly Twitter, yesterday.

"According to the latest forecasts, the crucial period for Hungary will begin tomorrow (Wednesday), so flood protection is going full steam ahead."

Drone footage from yesterday showed the Hungarian village of Vének, near Győr in the north of the country, submerged under water.

"I think it's kind of connected to the climate change because it's a sudden flood," said 51-year-old resident Georg Bercsanyi.

In the Czech Republic, water levels were mostly receding, but rivers were still peaking in some parts of southern Bohemia.

Finance Minister Zbyněk Stanjura said he would like parliament to approve an amendment to the budget to make room for flood relief, even though the cost of the damage is still not known.

Stanjura said it could perhaps be in the order of €3.6bn.

Mayors of some Czech towns in the Opava river area demanded that this weekend's elections for regional assemblies and one third of the upper house of parliament be postponed due to a lack of power and flooding of polling stations.

However, the government has decided to carry on with the vote, saying that makeshift voting stations and other improvised solutions would be used.

Austria to ramp up disaster fund to €1bn

Meanwhile, Austria announced a package of measures in response to severe flooding across the country, including a tripling of the federal disaster fund and tax postponements for affected companies.

Austrian political parties also suspended campaign appearances for parliamentary elections scheduled for 29 September, with events and TV debates put back until the end of the week.

"The last few days have been enormously challenging for many regions in Austria and our neighbouring countries and have caused great suffering and unimaginable destruction," Chancellor Karl Nehammer said in a statement.

The disaster fund will more than triple to €1bn, he said.

Lower Austria, which was particularly hard hit, received its first aid on Tuesday, with the government providing €45m from the disaster fund.

The fund provides financing for preventative measures and repairs to damages from disasters.