The popular promenade along the Obertrave offers a magnificent view of Lübeck's old town. The benches along the promenade invite visitors to gaze and linger. However, because this area is sunken and very close to the banks of the Trave River, this idyllic spot is considered prone to flooding.
In November 1872, during a Baltic Sea storm surge, the water rose exceptionally high above the banks: to this day, it remains the most severe known flood on the Baltic Sea, with a water level of 3.3 meters above mean sea level. The flood claimed 271 lives along the entire Baltic coast, and 15,000 people were left homeless.
A catastrophe commemorated by a flood marker on building number 8 at the corner of Pagönnienstraße.