The Alme is a 50 km long river

River

A river is a natural watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, a lake, a sea, or another river. In a few cases, a river simply flows into the ground or dries up completely before reaching another body of water. Small rivers may also be called by several other names, including...

 in North Rhine-Westphalia

North Rhine-Westphalia

North Rhine-Westphalia is the most populous state of Germany, with four of the country's ten largest cities. The state was formed in 1946 as a merger of the northern Rhineland and Westphalia, both formerly part of Prussia. Its capital is Düsseldorf. The state is currently run by a coalition of the...

, Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. It is a left tributary of the Lippe

Lippe River

The Lippe is a river in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is a right tributary of the Rhine and in length.The source is located at the edge of the Teutoburg Forest in Bad Lippspringe close to the city of Paderborn. It runs westward through Paderborn, Lippstadt and then along the northern edge...

, into which it flows near Paderborn

Paderborn

Paderborn is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, capital of the Paderborn district. The name of the city derives from the river Pader, which originates in more than 200 springs near Paderborn Cathedral, where St. Liborius is buried.-History:...

. The Alme defines the Alme Valley and flows through the towns Büren

Büren, Westphalia

Büren is a municipality in the district of Paderborn, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.-Geography:Büren is situated on the river Alme, approx. 20 km south-west of Paderborn and approx...

, Borchen

Borchen

Borchen is a municipality in the district of Paderborn, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.-Location:Borchen is situated in the Paderborn tableland, approximately 5 km south of Paderborn. The municipality also contains a small part of the eastern Hellweg area...

 and Paderborn.

Tributaries

• Nette
  Nette (Alme)
  Nette is a river of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany....
  
  
• Gosse (river)
• Afte
  Afte
  Afte is a river of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.-See also:*List of rivers of North Rhine-Westphalia...
  
  
• Altenau
  Altenau (Alme)
  Altenau is a river of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany....
  
  

Flood of 1965

In July 1965 an extraordinary Flood happened which became part of history as a local flood of the century called "Heinrichsflut" (Henry-Flood). After heavy rain on July 15th, 16th and 17th, cellars were flooded. In the village Wewelsburg

Wewelsburg

For the village of Wewelsburg see Village of WewelsburgWewelsburg is a Renaissance castle located in the northeast of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, in the village of Wewelsburg which is a quarter of the city Büren, Westphalia, in district of Paderborn in the Alme Valley. The castle has the...

 a bridge was crashed, pioneers of the Army had to be involved. Streets transformed to rivers, the trains- and bus-traffic had to be stopped. As a reuslt of the flood, which also involved the Tributaries of the Alme and the Lippe, the "Wasserverband Obere Lippe" was founded, targeting on preventing for floods in the future by building detention basin

Detention basin

A detention basin is a stormwater management facility installed on, or adjacent to, tributaries of rivers, streams, lakes or bays that is designed to protect against flooding and, in some cases, downstream erosion by storing water for a limited period of a time. These basins are also called "dry...

s.

Flood of 2007

On August 22nd 2007 the Alme flooded around Büren, after heavy rainfalls of partly 70 l rain/m² in one night. In the Village Weine the record of 1965 was overflooded. Even though the flood was not as dramatic as that of 1965 the schools in Büren had to be closed earlier than usual, some streets could not be passed. 220 firemen of the local fire brigades had to clear out flooded cellars and to prepare several houses by using Sandbag

Sandbag

A sandbag is a sack made of hessian/burlap, polypropylene or other materials that is filled with sand or soil and used for such purposes as flood control, military fortification, shielding glass windows in war zones and ballast....

s.