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On Wednesday afternoon, the rising floodwaters of the river Vltava were just a couple of metres below Prague's famous medieval Charles Bridge, which has been closed to the public since Tuesday morning. Preservationists, Prague citizens and tourists have been keeping their fingers crossed that no harm befalls the historic bridge. What you may not know is that - over 100 years ago - several parts of Charles Bridge were actually washed away in tumultuous floods. Ian Willoughby has the story.

The Czech capital city Prague has been hit by its worst flood in more than a hundred years. 50, 000 residents have been ordered by authorities to evacuate their homes, and both citizens and tourists have been repeatedly warned to stay away from danger areas that include parts of the historic centre. Earlier in the day I spoke to my colleague Rob Cameron, who was at the scene:

It isn't often that we bring you a report from a small village church in the mountains. But Paseky nad Jizerou is special. The village is on the western edge of the Krkonose Mountains, about a hundred kilometers north-east of Prague, and every year, just for a few days in August, some of the Czech Republic's top classical musicians gather there.

It's not just Prague that is having to cope with floods. Torrential rains have meant that a state of emergency has spread even to the far north of the country along the River Elbe. But much of the most serious flooding has been in the south, near the Czech Republic's borders with Austria and Germany. The centre of the historic town of Cesky Krumlov is entirely under water, as is the region's biggest city Ceske Budejovice, which has faced a series of flood waves. Earlier Radio Prague's David Vaughan talked to Barbora Tosnerova, who lives in

The whole country might be absorbed by this latest wave of severe flooding, the papers full of photos of swollen rivers and inundated fields. It's not the first time the Czech Republic has been hit, at least once a decade the country finds itself filling sandbags and wading through muddy water. The difference is now - almost thirteen years after the fall of Communism - the media can report freely on natural disasters such as floods, a far cry from the situation before 1989. Rob Cameron reports.

The Czech Republic is counting the human cost of the latest round of severe flooding to hit the country, which claimed up to four lives and made 2,000 others temporarily homeless. The worst of the flooding occurred in the South Bohemia region, but rising waters have reached as far as the River Vltava in Prague. Rob Cameron reports.

Imagine having your car repaired and being offered a 20% discount for not asking for an invoice. Would you be tempted or would you act like a good citizen and reject the offer? Well, in the Czech Republic many fail to resist temptation. Thursday's issue of the daily Mlada Fronta Dnes gave out a warning signal when it disclosed the results of a study made for the World Bank according to which every second Czech citizen is guilty of cheating the state on taxes. More from Dita Asiedu:

The name of the former Foreign Minister Jan Kavan has recently been appearing in the media mainly in connection with an alleged murder plot involving Mr Kavan's former senior aide at the Ministry. But the scandal has overshadowed the fact that Mr Kavan is soon to assume a senior post in the United Nations. Last month, Jan Kavan was elected President of the UN General Assembly for the coming year. Before he assumes his role as President upon the opening of the 57th session on September 10, Mr Kavan is busy preparing for his new responsibilities.