Recent severe flooding in Germany's southern state of Bavaria claimed the life of a 28-year-old man before subsiding on Thursday.

The man drowned after his rubber dinghy was overturned Wednesday on a raging river near the Bavarian city of Rosenheim, the Deutsche Welle quoted local police as saying.

Police said rivers that had risen to record levels earlier in the week continued to recede, easing fears of further disaster. As of Thursday afternoon, six districts were still considered disaster areas, while six others had been given the all-clear.

Dry weather was forecast through much of the region, providing relief for panicked residents who had piled sandbags in front of houses and businesses in recent days to shield their possessions from the surging flood waters.

Bavarian Premier Edmund Stoiber has announced an immediate aid program for flood victims. Private households with damages of over 5,000 euros (6,140 US dollars) can receive 2,500 euros in aid. Small and medium-sized companies which suffered damage to machinery or to their shop floors are eligible for grants of up to 150,000 euros.

Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder, who is scheduled to visit the flood-stricken region Thursday, has offered to share the costs of the flood aid with the federal state of Bavaria.

Source: Xinhua