PRAGUE, Aug 16: Czechs started counting the cost of the worst flood in memory as the first of more than 200,000 people displaced by the surging currents returned to their homes in the historic centre of Prague on Friday.

In the district of Smichov on the western bank of the Vltava river, residents armed with shovels and brooms began the massive task of cleaning up the slimy residue left by two metres (seven feet) of muddy water.

“It was almost up to the ceiling — everything has been destroyed,” said Radek Hornych, 41, whose small electrical workshop was still ankle-deep in sludge.

Outside on the street was a growing pile of his belongings — a sodden mattress, electrical equipment, shoes and old vinyl music records — all covered in brown slime and beyond repair.

“I had to evacuate very quickly so I only had time to take my PC and some important documents,” he said. “There’s nothing left to do but start again.”

The scene was repeated throughout the street, which was evacuated on Tuesday night as the Vltava surged to highs not seen in more than 100 years. Police still guard the area, which remains uninhabitable although the water has subsided.

“This used to be my daughter’s room,” said one woman who would not give her name. “This was the piano she used to play,” she added, pointing to a warped instrument covered in mud, its keys stuck solid.

Late Thursday authorities gave the green light for the first of some 45,000 displaced Prague residents to return to their homes, although many more are expected to spend at least one more night in temporary shelters.

Officials said the Vltava was receding by around seven centimetres per hour, and had dropped overnight to a level of 4.84 metres, still more than four times above normal.

Those who were cleaning up Friday said the water may have gone but the disaster, which has claimed 13 lives around the Czech Republic, was far from over.

“We’re afraid that the house will collapse,” said Jana Hejdova, 43.—AFP