WARSAW, POLAND – European Union (EU) President Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday expressed her condolences to Central European countries whose infrastructure and homes have been severely damaged by severe floods that have so far claimed the lives of 24 people in the region. Pledging billions of euros in aid.
Ms von der Leyen made a quick visit to flood-affected areas in southeastern Poland and met with heads of government from affected countries including Poland, Austria, the Czech Republic and Slovakia.
He said funding for infrastructure repairs would be provided quickly from the EU’s Solidarity Fund, while 10 billion euros ($11 billion) from the so-called Cohesion Fund would be provided for the most urgent repairs. The special approach does not require co-financing from these countries to release funds.
“We say this is 100% European funding and there will be no co-financing,” von der Leyen told a news conference. “These are extraordinary times, and extraordinary times require extraordinary measures.”
Meanwhile, massive flood waves threatened new areas, with heavy rains causing flooding and the evacuation of around 1,000 people in Italy’s northern Emilia-Romagna region. In central Europe, receding waters revealed the scale of destruction caused by unusually heavy rains that began a week ago.
Czech Interior Minister Vit Raksan said one more person was reported killed in the hard-hit northeast of the country on Thursday, bringing the country’s death toll to five. Seven people each died in Poland and Romania, and five people died in Austria, bringing the overall death toll to 24.
Authorities sent troops to assist. In the northeastern Czech Republic, soldiers joined firefighters and other emergency services to support recovery efforts. Military helicopters distributed humanitarian aid while soldiers built a temporary bridge to replace the one that was washed away.
About 400 people remain evacuated from their homes in the state capital, Ostrava. Water levels in the Ruznice river reached extremely high levels in the southwest, but officials said there was no immediate need to evacuate the 1,000 people in the town of Veseli nad Ruznice.
Clean-up efforts were underway in Austria after floods washed away roads, caused landslides and damaged bridges. Fire department spokesman Klaus Stevall said firefighters and soldiers pumped water and mud out of the house and disposed of damaged furniture, broadcaster ORF said.
Lower Austria’s governor, Johanna Miklleitner, said the recovery is expected to take years, according to Austrian News Agency.
Vienna’s public transport company has had to pump almost 1 million liters (260,000 gallons) of water since last weekend. Ten towns and regions remained inaccessible as of Thursday, APA reported.
Flood waters continued to rise in Hungary as authorities closed roads and train stations. Ferries along the Danube have stopped. In the capital Budapest, water overflowed the city’s low quays and threatened to reach tram and subway lines. Some transportation facilities were suspended.
Further upstream, in an area known as the Danube Bend, homes and restaurants near the riverbank were flooded.
Prime Minister Viktor Orbán said at a press conference on Thursday that nearly 6,000 experts, including personnel from Hungary’s water agency and the military, had been mobilized, and prison inmates were also involved in filling the sandbags.
The water level in the Danube River exceeded 771 centimeters (25 feet), approaching the record of 891 centimeters (29.2 feet) set during the 2013 floods.
In southwestern Poland, high waves reached the city of Wrocław and were expected to take hours or even days to break, putting pressure on levees.
The water level in the Oder River just before Wrocław was 6.4 meters (21 feet), about 2 meters (6.5 feet) above the warning level but still lower than the disastrous floods of 1997.
Water and electricity have been restored in two of the worst-hit towns, Stronie Slaski and Radek Zdorj, the head of local recovery efforts said after an emotional appeal to Prime Minister Donald Tusk for help. said General Michal Kamieniecki. the day before, by a young woman identified only as Katarzyna.
As concerns grew, Tusk invited von der Leyen to Wrocław to see the situation firsthand. Heads of government from the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Austria also attended.
In Italy, rivers flooded in the provinces of Ravenna, Bologna and Forli Cesena as local mayors urged people to stay in their upper floors or leave their homes. These areas were hit by devastating floods in 2023, with more than 20 rivers overflowing and 17 people killed.
Italy’s Deputy Minister for Transport and Infrastructure Galeazzo Binami announced on Thursday that two people are missing in Bagnocavallo, Ravenna province.
At least 800 people in Ravenna and nearly 200 in Bologna spent the night in evacuation centres, schools and sports centres. Trains were suspended, schools were closed, and residents were advised to avoid travel.
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Associated Press writers Justin Spike in Budapest, Hungary, Karel Janicek in Prague and Giada Zampano in Rome contributed to this report.
