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Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler: According to the Ministry of the Interior, the mobile gas supply system is a "short-term solution"
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Thomas Frey / dpa
Around three months after the flood disaster in Rhineland-Palatinate, 1,100 households in the Ahr valley have been reconnected to the gas network.
On Thursday, a mobile gas supply system for the city of Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler went into operation, as the Interior Ministry announced.
This is used to supply heat.
At the same time, work is being carried out on restoring the regular lines.
Until then, the mobile system is a short-term solution. "After the very bad reports in summer about a lack of gas supply in winter in large parts of the city of Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, I am very happy that we have now succeeded in securing an interim supply with this liquefied natural gas system," said Begona Herrmann, Vice-President of the Rhineland-Palatinate Supervision and Service Directorate (ADD). The energy supplier EVM announced in August that large parts of the city will probably not be able to be supplied with gas until March next.
In addition to Bad Neuenahr-Ahrweiler, households in seven towns in the Grafschaft municipality, which can now be supplied again under increased pressure, will also benefit from the system, according to the Ministry of the Interior.
The ministry called on those affected to put their house connections back into operation beforehand.
Each connection must be individually vented and checked.
Households where the gas meter has been removed must commission a plumber to put the heating back on.
Heavy rains had triggered catastrophic flooding on rivers in Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia in mid-July.
Many communities, especially in the Ahr Valley, were devastated.
Supply networks were destroyed in the process.
In Rhineland-Palatinate, 133 people were killed in the flood.
There were 48 deaths in North Rhine-Westphalia.
ime / AFP