Serbia and Bosnia today called for international aid after floods claimed at least 35 lives and laid waste to towns and cities across the Balkans.
The floods, the worst in the region since modern records began, have forced tens of thousands of people to evacuate their homes while Serbia’s main power plant was at risk of further damage from the surging waters.
Officials also warned of the threat of landmines — a remnant of the war in Bosnia in the Nineties— which could explode after being churned up by the floods. More than 2,000 landslides have been reported in Bosnia and the floods have crippled the infrastructure in many areas. Rescue helicopters from the European Union, US and Russia have been evacuating people.
But Serbian prime minister Aleksandar Vucic said the country now needed further help, particularly deliveries of food, clothing and bottled water. He said emergency personnel and volunteers were preparing for a “flood-wave” on one of the country’s main rivers, the Sava.
The Obrenovac power plant, where 12 people have reportedly died, was also still at risk. Flooding has cut power generation at the Nikola Tesla plant by 40 per cent.
Bosnian refugee minister Adil Osmanovic described the flooding as “catastrophic” with roads, railway lines and homes destroyed. North-east Bosnia was one of the worst hit areas.
Officials said that three months’ worth of rain had fallen on the Balkans in recent days, producing the worst floods since rainfall measurements began 120 years ago. The floods and landslides have raised fears about the estimated one million land mines planted during Bosnia’s 1992-95 war.
In Serbia, residents spent the weekend piling sandbags in riverside towns including the capital Belgrade. Serbian tennis player Novak Djokovic joined calls for help. “Support and solidarity for my people in Serbia!’’ he wrote on Twitter. Large parts of eastern Croatia were also underwater, with villages cut off.
