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    In pictures: Drought exposes Word War II ships, strands boats as Europe’s river levels plunge

    NCIJ NETWNCIJ NETWORKBy World No Comments3 Mins Read

    Water levels on the Danube River, the second longest in Europe, have dropped so low due to drought and extreme heat over the summer that the hulls of dozens of German warships from World War II are emerging into view and the remains of an ancient mammoth were uncovered in Romania. In Germany, fishing boats have been stuck near the banks of the Rhine, and sections of France’s Loire riverbed are partially dry.

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    A man walks on a sandbank near wreckage of a German WWII warship which was exposed due to drought impacts on the Danube River in Serbia, August 4, 2026. © Darko Vojinovic, AP

     

    This handout photograph taken by Teodor Mechev and released on July 30, 2026, shows scientists examining remains of an ancient mammoth near the village of Ryahovo, south of Bucharest.
    Scientists from Rousse’s Regional Historical Museum examine the remains of an ancient mammoth as historically low water levels on the Danube River exposed parts of the riverbed near the village of Ryahovo, south of Bucharest, on July 30, 2026. © AFP

    The Romanian Navy detonates underwater explosives during a controlled demolition of submerged rocks to improve water flow to the Cernavoda Nuclear Power Plant amid exceptionally low water levels.
    The Romanian Navy detonates underwater explosives during a controlled demolition of submerged rocks to improve water flow amid exceptionally low water levels on the Danube River, Izvoarele, Romania, August 3, 2026. © Andreea Alexandru, AP

    This photo shows boats in a marina left stranded on dry ground by the low water level of the Danube River near Apatin, Serbia, on August 4, 2026.
    Boats in a marina left stranded on dry ground by the low water level of the Danube River near Apatin, Serbia, on August 4, 2026. © Nenad Mihajlovic, AFP

    A frog floats in a puddle in an area that is usually submerged along the Danube River that is exposed due to low water levels in Rasova, Romania, Monday, Aug. 3 2026
    A frog floats in a puddle in an area that is usually fully submerged along the Danube River in Rasova, Romania, August 3, 2026. © Andreea Alexandru, AP

    A former eel fishing boat covered in dried mud is seen on low water near the banks of the river Rhine near Neuss, western Germany, on July 30, 2026
    A former eel fishing boat covered in dried mud is seen on low water near the banks of the river Rhine near Neuss, western Germany, on July 30, 2026. © Ina Fassbender, AFP

    This photograph shows a plant sprout emerging from dried out soil of the partially dry Loire riverbed in Chécy near Orléans central France on July 22, 2026
    A plant sprout emerges from dried-out soil of the partially dry Loire riverbed in Chécy near Orléans in central France on July 22, 2026. © Alain Jocard, AFP

    Visitors bathe and sit on the sand of the partially dry Loire riverbed with a bridge in the background in Orléans central France on July 22, 2026
    Visitors bathe and sit on the sand of the partially dry Loire riverbed in Orléans, central France on July 22, 2026. © Alain Jocard, AFP

    (FRANCE 24 with AFP, AP and Reuters)

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