DRESDEN, GERMANY/PRAGUE, CZECH REPUBLIC.- Most of the cultural landmarks and works of art in Prague and Dresden appear to have been saved from the floodwaters that have devastated the cities. The torrents have raged through parts of the historic centers of both cities, which contain numerous galleries, museums and theatres.

Many important pieces of art in Prague were moved out of harm’s way before the waters arrived, according to Alfredo Azula, managing editor of English language newspaper the Prague Post. "It looks like we’ve been lucky. We had a lot of warning that the water was coming, so that stuff was moved to higher ground," he told BBC News Online. The city’s historic National Theatre, a landmark that dates from 1881 and became a symbol of Czech national renaissance in the 19th century, had been under threat of collapse. But is expected to survive now that water levels are dropping, Mr. Azula said. At the National Library, valuable volumes were taken to upper floors. However, some plaster casts of 20th Century sculptures kept in the basement of the Zbraslav Chateau, which houses the national collection of Asian art, were destroyed. Much of the historic part of the city is still closed, including Charles Bridge.

In Dresden, one of Europe’s greatest art collections, which includes Raphael’s "Sistine Madonna", in the ornate Zwinger Palace, was threatened as water rushed through the building’s vaults. Fortunately most of the art treasures were removed in time. But up to 8,000 works of art were moved to higher levels in two days by curators, soldiers and volunteers. Martin Roth, director general of the city’s art collections, said the water levels were "totally unexpected". Firefighters are pumping clear the cellars of the Zwinger Palace and the neighboring Semper Oper opera house, which was only reopened in 1985 after repair from World War II bomb damage. But water levels in Dresden are expected to rise further, and cities including the Slovak capital, Bratislava, and Salzburg in Austria are still under threat. Dozens of people have been killed across the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria and Russia.