Rhine water levels plunged to fresh record lows across western Germany over the weekend, with forecasts pointing to even steeper declines by midweek, after a prolonged heatwave and drought shrank the river in both depth and width.
Düsseldorf's gauge fell to 21 centimetres on Sunday, two centimetres below its 2018 record, and is expected to drop to 17 centimetres by Friday. Cologne measured 69 centimetres Sunday, with forecasts of 63 centimetres by Friday. At Emmerich, the gauge float sits dry with readings projected at minus nine centimetres later this week. The Kaub chokepoint hit its 2018 record low of 25 cm on Friday, and the Köln-Düsseldorf shipping company cancelled numerous sailings.
The disruption is rippling through industry. A full halt to Rhine shipping would require roughly 3,000 additional trucks per day, the German Institute for Economic Research warned. Maritime coordinator Christoph Ploß called for faster expansion of waterways, while North Rhine-Westphalia's economy minister Mona Neubaur said deepening the channel was not the solution. Beyond Germany, Italy's Po hit a historic low, Serbia cut coal-plant output, and Romania halted Dacia and Ford production. A World Weather Attribution study found human-caused climate change makes such droughts more likely.