Lthe storm Borissecond of the season, already leaves a The death toll has been 14 and thousands affected in Central and Eastern Europe, where Poland, Romania, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Austria They have been affected by strong downpours and the resulting river flooding and flooding.
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Romania is the worst hit so far, with six dead, dozens evacuated and more than 15,000 affected, especially in the county of Galati, in the east of the country, after floods described as “historic” by its authorities.
According to Emil Dragomir, the mayor of Slobozia Conachi, the rivers have already flooded and are affecting 76 percent of the buildings. He is describing it as a “total disaster.” in the area, with several roads blocked, more than 750 firefighters mobilized in rescue operations and the deployment of temporary camps and modular housing for those affected.
Romania
In the eastern county of Galati, the worst-affected region in Romania, heavy rains have caused extensive damage and left 25,000 people without electricity. Some 5,000 homes have been damaged. Authorities have confirmed the death of six people in the region in the past two days and hundreds have been evacuated.
Climate change increases the risk associated with cyclonic phenomena and the floods they cause.
National and local authorities have deployed a large-scale effort to rescue and care for the trapped people.and have set up temporary camps and modular housing for those affected.
The president, liberal Klaus Iohannis, expressed his solidarity with those affected and said that this storm was a new example of the effects of climate change.
“Climate change increases the risk associated with cyclonic phenomena and the floods they cause. Given the increasing frequency of these phenomena, it is imperative to accelerate critical infrastructure projects aimed at reducing risks,” he said.
Austria
In Austria, Boris’s scourge has caused rivers to rise in levels not seen in decades and forced one of the nine federal states to declareLower Austria, as a disaster area. Three deaths have been confirmed so far, one firefighter and two elderly people who drowned in their homes, both in Lower Austria.
The bodies of water have destroyed 12 dams in Lower Austria, 12,000 households are without electricity and 23 localities have no drinking water.
Some 800 people have been rescued by helicopter in the past few hours in Lower Austria, the largest and most populous federal state in the Alpine republic.
More than 2,400 soldiers are involved in the emergency relief efforts, while rail transport and some subway lines in Vienna have been suspended. President Alexander Van der Bellen has cancelled his trip to the United Nations General Assembly in New York due to the disaster.
Poland
In Poland, the storm has claimed the lives of four people and the Government of Donald Tusk has already prepared emergency funds and requested European aid. The Polish government has also declared several districts in the most affected southern regions as disaster zones: Lower Silesia, Silesia and Opole.
Additional forces are being mobilised to combat the floods, while some 1,600 people have already been evacuated.
While heavy rains are still persisting in many parts of the southern half of Polandthe attention of emergency services is now directed to containing the overflowing rivers, and in particular the Pilchowice reservoir (south), which has begun to overflow and has forced the evacuation of more than 3,000 residents.
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is also suffering from the storm, especially in the north, where more than 50,000 homes have been left without electricity. Authorities reported one person dead and seven missing, while the number of evacuees rose to 12,000 nationwide.
The persistent rainfall since Thursday has caused many rivers and streams to overflow their banks, and dozens of places have now declared the third (maximum) degree of flood activity, especially in the north-eastern region of Moravia-Silesia.
The town of Litovel, which is crossed by the Morava River, is 80 percent flooded.
“Around 80 percent of the city is under water. We are cut off from the rest of the world. At the moment, no one can get in or out here, only the firemen, because in some places the water is already over a metre high,” said Viktor Kohout, the mayor of the city.
More than 12,000 people have been evacuated in the country, where hundreds of thousands of homes are without electricity as a result of breakdowns in high-voltage networks.
The flooding of the Odra, Opava and Novohradka rivers remains a threat. Prime Minister Petr Fiala warned of the risk of water and food contamination and called on citizens to take precautions.
Hungary
In Hungary, authorities are warning that the Danube River could reach record levels in the coming hours.
The army has deployed specialist teams to strengthen flood protection, and Budapest’s mayor has said they are prepared to deal with one of the worst floods in years.
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán announced on Monday that he was postponing all his international commitments to deal with the situation.
Beyond Europe
Heavy rains and flooding have also caused damage in both Asia and Africa: In the first case, the most affected country is Burma, where tropical depression Yagi It left 113 dead, 64 missing and more than 320,000 displaced throughout the country, especially in the central region.
In Africa, at least 281 prisoners are missing in Nigeria, where prisons have had to be evacuated due to flooding that inundated much of the city of Maiduguri, the capital of Borno state. and where more than a million people have been affected
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