State of disaster after violent downpours

Slovenia

Slovenia Heavy rains and floods paralyze Slovenia 

 

Peter Schwartz  

 

Published at 2:08 am  

 

News 

 

Violent downpours and floods have hit Slovenia. 

 

At least four have died in what is the worst natural disaster in the country's history. 

 

- This is the worst flood since the country's independence, said Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob.  

Two-thirds of Slovenia's land surface has been affected by floods since Thursday evening, according to Prime Minister Robert Golob, who believes that the costs of the natural disaster amount to half a billion euros. 

 

- This is the worst flood since the country's independence, said Slovenian Prime Minister Robert Golob on Saturday. 

 

Devastating floods are estimated to have caused damage of one and a half billion euros (over 5.8 billion in Swedish kronor). Photo: Miro Majcen / AP  

Two Dutchmen dead - struck by lightning  

 

The floods and landslides have claimed at least four lives. Several hundred houses have been damaged. Bridges and roads have been destroyed. The storm has caused power outages and access to water is scarce in parts of the country.  

 

In the storm, two Dutch men have died, possibly after being struck by lightning, Slovenian STA reports, Reuters reports. 

 

Dutch authorities have confirmed the deaths, but not the cause. A Slovenian man also reportedly died outside Ljubljana. An elderly Slovenian woman has also died in the storm.

 

Several people have died and the devastation is enormous after the floods. Photo: Miro Majcen / AP

 

Emergency services had difficulty reaching the flooded areas and asked the public for inflatable boats where roads were closed and impassable due to the landslides. Helicopters evacuated people trapped in their homes in the village of Škofja Loka. 

 

- We haven't seen floods like this in a thousand years, the rescue chief in the village of Most pri Komendi told Slovenian television. 

 

The flooded village of Sneberje near the town of Kamnik. Photo: Miro Majcen / AP 

 

von der Leyen: The EU is with Slovenia  

 

The Slovenian government has asked the European Commission for financial support from the European Solidarity Fund to repair the damage,  STA reports.  

 

“Heartbreaking to follow the devastation in Slovenia. The EU is with Slovenia," European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote in a tweet.  

 

During Saturday, representatives from Slovenian environmental and water organizations stated that the weather had calmed down somewhat. The weather warning had also been downgraded to yellow warning, from red, during the day. 

 

In the village of Stahovica, a bridge has collapsed and houses have been swept away by the muddy water river that sweeps through the village. Photo: Miro Majcen / AP