Eastern Ore Mountains
As early as 1897, during the floods in the Eastern Ore Mountains of 1927 as well as in 1954, 1957, 1958 and 1966, serious flood damage occurred along the line, but this was by no means as great as the 2002 floods. Between 12 and 14 August 2002 enormous masses of water were discharged above the crest of the Eastern Ore Mountains. In Zinnwald-Georgenfeld, 406 mm of rain fell in this time, almost half of the annual average precipitation. The torrential rain turned the Müglitz into a torrential stream, devastating almost the entire valley. The situation was exacerbated by the break-up of the only flood retention basin in the Brießnitz valley, which is located above Glashütte. For the third time after 1897 and 1927, the line was largely destroyed. The dams and bridges were submerged and heavily devastated by parts of structures that had broken away. The resulting total loss amounted to approximately €50 million.