Longing for April Showers

Foresters in the state of Brandenburg, which surrounds Berlin, are concerned about fire in their pine forests, as the sandy ground the tree favors dries out more quickly than clay soils. The German capital has had no significant rain since March 23.

Crossing a small pedestrian bridge over the Erpe, a stream that flows into the Spree River to the east of the city, water ecologist Christian Steinberger noted with surprise: "It's flowing backwards."

In the state of North-Rhine Westphalia, bordering the Netherlands and Belgium, foresters are worried that trees felled by a powerful storm that left a trail of devastation across northern Europe in January pose a serious fire hazard.

Some regions have seen no rain since early March, while most of the country has been dry throughout April.

Widespread drought

Recalling the 1975 drought, when some 8,000 hectares (30 square miles) of forest were burnt out on the Lüneburg Heath south of Hamburg, meteorologist Klaus-Peter Wittich said conditions were similar this year.

Various factors came into play, apart from lack of rain, he said. These included temperatures, which have been unseasonably high, and wind speeds.

Wittich said some parts of Germany, including Brandenburg, had reached level five on the "drought index" -- the highest level.

Farmers were beginning to complain about the lack of rain, worrying about their cereal crops.

"We desperately need rain," said Jens Rademacher, a consultant for the German Farmers' Union, referring to the eastern parts of the country.

Some farmers were already irrigating rapeseed and potato crops, despite low water table levels.

Spree Riviera opens

City dwellers were taking a different view. Shirtsleeve weather had hit Berlin, and the city "beaches" along the Spree -- as well as other rivers in Germany -- were opening to office workers sneaking off for an hour or two in the sun with a glass of something cold in their hands.

The Berlin beach in sight of the new main railway station was doing steady trade.

Dubbed the Federal Press Beach in honor of the many media concerns housed nearby in the center of political Berlin, the beach draws a mix of civil servants, journalists, office workers and tourists.

"I've taken the afternoon off to get a little sun," said Manfred Hausmann, 58, looking out over the new steel-and-glass dome of the Reichstag, the building that once again houses the German parliament.

"There's a nice mix of people here, but the main thing is the bar," he added.