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River Rhine dries up during European heat wave

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Published Aug. 9, 2018, 2:11 p.m. ET
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A man walks his dog through the empty bed of the river Moselle near the confluence with the Rhine river, Europe's most important waterways in Koblenz, Germany.
A man walks his dog through the empty bed of the river Moselle near the confluence with the Rhine river, Europe's most important waterways in Koblenz, Germany.REUTERS
A family walks next to a puddle in the partially dried riverbed of Rhine, in front of the skyline of Dusseldorf, Germany.
A family walks next to a puddle in the partially dried riverbed of Rhine, in front of the skyline of Dusseldorf, Germany.REUTERS
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The partially dried riverbed of the Rhine is pictured in front of the skyline of Dusseldorf, Germany, July 31, 2018. Water levels remain low as a drought and heatwave continues and freight vessels cannot sail fully loaded on the river.
The partially dried riverbed of the Rhine is pictured in front of the skyline of Dusseldorf, Germany, July 31, 2018. Water levels remain low as a drought and heatwave continues and freight vessels cannot sail fully loaded on the river.REUTERS
The river bed of the Rhine is dried on August 8, 2018 in Duesseldorf, western Germany, as the heatwave goes on.
The river bed of the Rhine is dried on Aug. 8 in Duesseldorf, western Germany, as the heatwave goes on. AFP/Getty Images
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It’s so hot in Germany and Switzerland that an entire swath of the River Rhine has dried up completely, according to a new report.

The water levels in a long stretch of the 766-mile-long river, which runs from Lake Constance to Rhine Falls, are disturbingly low — and a massive section is bone dry, leaving the former river span looking like a rocky desert, Metro UK reported.

Earlier this week, about a ton of fish have died of soaring temperatures in Swiss waters, The Rhine specifically rose about 4 degrees higher than normal for the summer season, according to the report.

Andreas Vogeli, who works for the hunting and fisheries department in northern Schaffhausen canton told Metro that workers have been recovering the lifeless, suffocated fish for days.

“We have been watching dead fish for several days floating down the Rhine,” Vogeli said. “We had to recover about 1,000 kilos [more than 2,200 pounds] from the river.”

Samuel Grundler of the Swiss fisheries association called the issue is “very precarious in many small and medium stretches of water.”

“We have done everything in our power,” he told the outlet.

Besides Switzerland and Germany, the River Rhine also passes through the Principality of Liechtenstein, Austria, France and the Netherlands, where it flows into the North Sea at Rotterdam.

The Rhine isn’t the only European body of water drying up from the steamy temperatures. The UK is experiencing its longest heatwave since 1976 — and Selset Reservoir in County Durham is completely bare in parts after experiencing some of the hottest weather in 40 years, Metro reported.

Wayoh Reservoir near Manchester has also dried up, according to the report.