High temperatures and dry weather are taking a toll on Europe this summer. July was the driest month recorded in France and the hottest month in Spain since 1961. The results are as expected: reservoir and river levels drop to historic lowsAccording to some scientists, it is the most severe drought in Europe in the last 500 years. Water scarcity creates a critical situation affecting homes, factories, farmers and property across the continent.

In France, a plan has already been activated to deal with a hydrographic crisis described as: “worst in the country” because there are records. More than 100 Gallic municipalities have no drinking water and are supplied. Spain is not far behind: its reserves are at a historic low of 40% and are falling by 1.5% per week. There is no such data in Italy for 230 years. Suffice it to say that the Po River, the longest in the country, descends to one-tenth.

However, the crisis does not only affect the south. In the Rhine in the northwest, water levels also dropped dangerously. Some boats operate at 25% capacity so they don’t get stuck. Regardless, one of the most surprising things about the phenomenon is that as the rivers dried up, Hidden artifacts revealed It has long been submerged, from Roman camps and WWII shipwrecks to the famous “hunger stones”.

surface residues

they were exposed Up to 20 German warships It sank during World War II due to falling water levels in the Danube near the Serbian port city of Prahovo. One of hundreds sunk along the river by Nazi Germany’s Black Sea Fleet in 1944.

The Zibello is a WWII wood-carrying barge that sank in 1943.

A 450-pound WWII bomb was found in Italy. More than 3,000 people had to be evacuated from their homes to detonate. The river also appeared ruins of an old village In Piedmont, again, World War II. The remains of Zibello, a 50-metre cargo barge sunk in World War II, and a Nazi military vehicle.

In Spain, archaeologists are jumping for joy at the discovery of a prehistoric stone circle called the “Spanish Stonehenge.” Actually on the subject Guadalperal Dolmenthis stone circle is fully exposed to air at the Valdecañas reservoir Cáceres, where the water level drops to 28% of its capacity.

Guadalperal Dolmen.

Evaporation of the As Conchas reservoir also exposed the Aquis Querquennis, a roman castle In Galicia, which dates from 69 and 79 AD and was abandoned around 120 AD, the fall of the Belesar reservoir (currently 39% of its capacity) revealed the old town of Portomarín, where people were flooded. They could even walk between their houses.

Aquis Querquennis, a Roman fort built between 69 and 79 AD

But the most farsighted are the “hunger stones” carved into the waters of rivers during previous droughts. warning to future generations that bad times come when the stones are above the water. Wenn du mich siehst, dann weine (“Cry if you see me”) reads inscription on a rock in the Elbe River near the town of Děčín in northern Czech Republic. “When this sinks, life will be more colorful again,” says another near Bleckede in Germany.

The “hunger” stone, located near the town of Děčín, along the Elbe River.

Ski business in decline

The drought also affected many businesses in lakes and rivers, such as canoes. The dire situation in Spain meant that many companies were devoted to adventure fun in the many swamps of Catalonia. have to lock. In addition, companies organizing canoe trips or landings, which have proliferated over the years, have also found themselves in a disastrous period that will affect their pockets.

According to this article from Eldiario.es, with a 31% reserve in the La Llosa del Cavall (Lleida) reservoir, Kayak K1 company had to upgrade its canoe fleet. Since the water level is too low, it is not possible to operate these boats. As the director of this federation stated in that article, the decrease in turnover in twenty companies is more than 50% compared to 2021.

Kayak Pla de Sau company estimates that its customers have decreased by more than half last year. Even the old church of Sant Romà has come out of its waters and reached a point that can be reached on foot. There’s no need to say much.

The Church of Sant Roma in the Sau reservoir near Barcelona.