A severe storm hit the Croatian Adriatic on October 5th. The holiday resort of Podgora on the Makarska Riviera between Split and Dubrovnik was hit hardest.
Podgora – Azure blue waters, palm trees, towering limestone mountains and white pebble beaches. The Makarsksa Riviera in Croatia, located between the famous coastal towns of Split and Dubrovnik, is a holiday paradise par excellence. Above all, but not only, German and Austrian holidaymakers love the coastal section. But on Saturday (October 5th) a violent storm turned the sunny paradise into a water hell. Over 140 liters of water fell per square meter in just a few minutes, and even small streams turned into torrential torrents that swept away everything in their path.
There are oppressive scenes: cars were swept away by the masses of water and washed up on the beach, streams found new paths through houses. “Almost everything was flooded, and the huge stream of water that came down entered all the houses and basements within an hour,” said journalist Karmen Šore during a live broadcast by the channel HRT.
Croatian mayor sends citizens to upper floors
Podgora Municipality Mayor Petra Radić warned citizens via Facebook: “If you are locked in the house, try to go to the highest floor possible and turn off the main sources of electricity, gas and water.” Another urgent piece of advice from the local leader: “If you are in a car and cannot safely get into one If you reach a dry area, get out of the vehicle immediately and seek higher ground. Pets should be left to their own devices before they endanger themselves.
It wasn’t until the next day that the consequences became apparent. According to information from dalmatinskiportal.hr A restaurant was “literally razed to the ground.” The owner’s wife reports: “Everything happened in five minutes, it suddenly poured and pushed the bar to the other side.” She escaped to the first floor.
Mayor Radić told HRT that the consequences of the flood are not yet known. It is the largest flood that has ever hit Podgora. The Directorate of Civil Protection reported loudly telegram.hrthat the storm led to an interruption in power supply to 3,000 households. At least no one was injured by the storm. The water from the pipes should urgently be boiled first.
A huge forest fire raged on the Croatian coast in the summer – is it to blame for the flooding?
Radic also reports landslides: “There are large amounts of mud and rock deposits on the roads, some of which have fallen, so that it is not possible to drive through Podgora until the damage is repaired.” The army, firefighters and many private companies from the Riviera are currently on site to clean up.
The mayor sees another cause as the enormous forest fires that raged on the Croatian coast in the summer and destroyed the vegetation, which is why the soil can no longer store water. Radic met with the responsible foresters. “We hope that something will be done, because after the fire we did not receive any concrete steps from all authorities that were promised to us,” she criticized.
There was also heavy flooding in the Istrian city of Pula and Split. Already in Storms hit the Croatian coast in May devastated. In September, 20 tornadoes hit the country’s coast. There was also a storm disaster in Croatia last year.
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