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The Czech Republic is still counting the costs from the two devastating floods that hit the country in 1997 and 2002. Just this week in fact the Agriculture Ministry released a report estimating the financial cost of the two great floods at more than 150 billion crowns, or 7.3 billion US dollars. To ensure the country is better prepared for another calamity, the emergency services are about to hold a three-day simulation exercise.

A memorial mass was celebrated on Saturday at the church of SS Fabian and Sebastian by the former settlement of Zivohost in central Bohemia, which was flooded during the construction of the Slapy dam. The mass, served by Archbishop Miloslav Vlk, was part of celebrations to mark the 950th anniversary of the first recorded mention of Zivohost. The church and its parish house were the only buildings preserved when Slapy was created.

Heavy downpours caused flooding in parts of the Czech capital on Sunday night. Firefighters were called out to deal with flooding at Prague's Vinohrady hospital, while some cellars and basement flats were also hit.

This week in Mailbox: problems with accessing Radio Prague's website, weather extremes in the Czech Republic, Radio Prague podcast service, the fifty-heller coin. Listeners quoted: Christopher Lewis, Umesh Kumar Yadav, Michel Solis, Trevor Ayson.

This week marks the fifth anniversary of the devastating 2002 floods here in Prague. Since the deluge, billions of crowns have gone into repairing the damage wrought by the floods. This clean-up operation has also meant a facelift for several parts of the city that, for decades previously, had been looking a bit down-at-heel. One such area is the right bank of the river Vltava, which Prague City Council is now hoping to transform into a promenade lined with attractions, to rival that of Berlin or Paris. Rosie Johnston went down to the bonnie, bonnie

At a press conference marking the fifth anniversary of the devastating 2002 floods, mayor of Prague Pavel Bem said that the City Hall had invested 2 billion CZK (100 million USD) into flood protection. He said that 95% of the city was now protected against a disaster of such magnitude and that in the event of a flood, the new protection system could be erected within 24 hours. 40 billion CZK have gone into construction and reconstruction work.

It is exactly five years ago that the Czech Republic was hit by devastating floods: the worst in the country's history. Within a matter of hours fifty thousand people were left homeless, hundreds found themselves stranded, and dozens went missing.

Torrential rain which hit the Czech Republic late on Friday afternoon caused local flooding in many parts of the country. Some smaller roads were impassable and a passenger train got de-railed due to a mud-slide onto the tracks. No one was reported injured. Firefighters were out all night pumping water from gardens and cellars. And in many parts of the country volunteers are spending their weekend helping with the clean-up operation.

With recent weather forecasts predicting droughts and risk of fires, it can be easy to forget that this month five years ago Prague was hit by one of the most disastrous floods in its history. Experts warn that Czechs should brace themselves for more weather extremes in the future - claiming that floods and droughts are actually two sides of the same coin. They have been discussing for some time now how to protect the landscape against flood waves and keep enough water-supply at the same time.

Czech Prime Minister Mirek Topolanek has written to his British counterpart Gordon Brown offering assistance in removing the damage caused by devastating floods affecting southern England. Speaking after a cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Mr Topolanek said the Czech Republic could offer Britain some very efficient pumps and drying equipment as well as the services of flood experts who have extensive experience of dealing with the damage caused by massive inundations. The Czech Republic itself suffered disastrous floods in 1997 and 2002. Britain is currently trying to cope with its worst floods in 60 years.