Brussels (dpa) – Twelve countries have sent emergency supplies and deployed search and rescue teams to Bosnia and Herzegovina after deadly floods, the European Commission said on Monday.
European Commissioner for Crisis Management Janez Lenarčič thanked the participants for helping Bosnia and Herzegovina with the “devastating floods” in the country.
The emergency support has been issued via the European Union’s Civil Protection Mechanism, a platform to coordinate and share emergency resources. Bosnia and Herzegovina requested the help on Saturday.
Albania, Turkey, Hungary, Montenegro, and Romania have sent shelter kits while Croatia, Slovenia, Montenegro and Serbia have already deployed search and rescue teams.
First responders from Bosnia and Herzegovina “are not facing this deadly disaster alone,” Lenarčič said.
Continued search for casualties
Disaster relief workers continue to search for possible casualties of the floods in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The mountain village of Jablanica, approximately 30 kilometres north of the city of Mostar, was the most severely affected.
Heavy rain and storms caused significant rock debris to bury houses. The boulders are believed to have come from a quarry located above.
The police are now also investigating the extent to which the technical condition of the quarry contributed to the scale of the disaster in Jablanica.
Roads in the flood-affected region were temporarily impassable. The water washed away the earth beneath railway tracks. In several places, disaster relief workers used boats to bring people to safety. (7 October)
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