Floods hit Greece, Turkey, Bulgaria

15/02/2010

ATHENS, Greece -- An emergency situation was declared on Sunday (February 14th) in the northern prefecture of Evros, Greece, where severe storms pushed water levels in the Maritsa River to dangerous levels. "We have not reached the critical point yet, but there is a risk of this," Deputy Interior Minister George Dolios said. Authorities have been forced to close rail bridges in the region.

Storms and torrential rains also hit parts of Turkey, particularly the northwest city of Edirne on Saturday. Flooding destroyed farmland and other property and forced roads and bridges to close.

Melting snow and heavy rains in the last few days resulted in massive flooding in southern Bulgaria. The Tundzha River overflew its banks and left many homes under water in the southeast city of Yambol, civil defence Agency officials announced on Sunday. Floods destroyed bridges and caused landslides around the town of Elhovo and its surrounding villages, virtually cutting them off from the rest of the country. More rain is forecast this week. (Darik - 15/02/10; ANA-MPA, SKAI, AP, Hurriyet - 14/02/10)