High water closes Rhine in south Germany to shipping

HAMBURG: Parts of the river Rhine in South Germany were still closed to shipping on Tuesday after a rise in water levels following rain and storms last week, authorities said.
Water levels are falling but the river may not open fully to inland shipping until Thursday, the environment agency in the south German state of Rhineland Palatinate said.
The southern Rhine rose last week after record rainfall and floods that killed at least 160 people in Germany's worst natural disaster in almost six decades.
Rhine river shipping remains stopped around Maxau and Speyer in south Germany, the German inland waterways navigation agency said.
High water means vessels do not have enough space to sail under bridges and the blockage prevents vessels sailing to Switzerland.
Dry weather on Monday and on Tuesday morning means shipping in northern sectors of the river from Mannheim to Duisburg is operating normally, it said.
The Rhine is an important shipping route for commodities including minerals, coal and oil products such as heating oil, grains and animal feed.