Bulgaria: Disaster Situation in 3 Municipalities in Smolyan Region due to Torrential Rains

Three municipalities in Smolyan district are in a state of emergency due to cut roads due to rivers overflowing their banks. These are Rudozem, Nedelino and Borino. A partial state of emergency has also been declared for the Devin village of Trigrad.

There has been no electricity in the entire Borino municipality since last night. The villages of Yagodina, Buynovo and Kozhari are without access. The main roads of the republican network have been cut off. Social networks are flooded with videos of wild rivers in the mountainous area. There are no reports of people in distress at this time,

The situation in Rudozem is difficult due to the intensive rise of the rivers Ardenska, Chepinska, Elhovska.

"At around 11.30 p.m. the mass problems started - landslides on the streets, roads. At 12.30 a.m. the level of the Chepinska and Elhovska rivers rose to a level at which it began to flow out of the riverbed and overflow in front of the municipality itself. At 1 o'clock the electricity in almost the whole municipality was cut off - we have flooded substations and that is why at 1 o'clock I declared a state of emergency. There are no evacuees at the moment, some have chosen to move to a safer place, but around 3.30 a.m. they all returned home and I guess they are already asleep. The overflow of the river and the flooding of the streets in the central part of the city made us take action to inform the population that there is a danger and evacuation is possible. I emphasize - not because of the overflow from the dam," said the mayor of Rudozem Rumen Pehlivanov.

At 2 o'clock after midnight a state of emergency was declared in the municipality of Nedelino. The level of the riverbed of the Nedelinska River has overflowed in several places....

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