Radio România Internațional

Tag: flash

  • Flash floods hit Romania

    Flash floods hit Romania

    News reports in Romania have been focusing on rainfalls, floods and flash floods, as the country is facing the rainiest month of June in 60 years. Rivers have overflown and killed people, destroying households, crops, bridges, and in some places disrupting road and railway transport.



    Where the danger is over, people are taking stock of whats left behind, and trying to fix what they can. Teams from the Inspectorate for Emergencies have been deployed to the flooded areas, and the Romanian Water Administration authority continues to monitor the rivers that are under warnings.



    The National Hydrology and Water Management Institute has lifted the code red alerts issued a few days ago for the rivers Prut, Timiş and Jiu, in the north and centre of the country, but they replaced them with code yellow or orange alerts.



    Special attention is still paid to Prut River, as flash floods occurring upstream, in neighbouring Ukraine, are quickly advancing towards Romania. Considerable flow rate increases have also been reported in the centre of the country, in counties Harghita and Covasna, where heavy rainfalls are expected to cause flash floods and mudslides. The danger is even greater on Timiş river, in the west.



    Meanwhile, military firefighters and gendarmes are carrying on assistance and support operations in the Jiu Valley area, where mining towns like Uricani and Aninoasa were badly hit. Hundreds of households were flooded and hundreds of people were evacuated.



    The Lupeni coal mine was also flooded. Almost 400 workers were evacuated after water went into the underground galleries, reaching one and a half metres high. Coal production was suspended until the situation is addressed.



    The heavy flooding reported in recent days in Romania is a consequence of chaotic exploitation of the forests and building materials along rivers, the Minister for the Environment, Waters and Forests Costel Alexe warned, after inspections on site. It is vital that we understand we need to take better care of the environment in the near future, so as to avoid situations like these, Costel Alexe said.



    Also while on site, the Interior Minister Marcel Vela called on local authorities in all the counties affected by flooding to step up the damage assessment and to submit relevant documentation to prefect offices.



    Weather experts warn that after this rainy spell, severe heat is expected to hit Romania.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • Flooding makes victims in Romania

    Flooding makes victims in Romania

    In Romania, the flash floods caused by the heavy rains of the past few days have killed people and caused substantial damage. Most rivers in the country are subject to code orange and yellow alerts until Friday, and the situation is even worse in the north, where hydrologists have a code red alert in place until Thursday at noon for the river Tisa, in Maramureş County, and Prut, in Botoşani County. In these areas in particular, the risk of flash floods remains high.



    Until Thursday, weather experts have also issued a code yellow alert for temporarily severe unstable weather for all mountain areas, for the north, centre, east and parts of the south regions of the country.



    Flash floods have already been reported in three-quarters of the counties, and emergency teams have been deployed to pump water out of households. Strong winds have brought down trees and electricity poles, also requiring emergency intervention.



    Tens of people were evacuated and temporarily housed in buildings offered by local authorities or relatives, some of them as a precaution and others because their own houses were simply washed away.



    Households, gardens, farm land and streets have been flooded, and the situation could have been even more dramatic, had people not been warned by the RoAlert system. This is how some of the victims describe what happened:



    “The water was knee deep. We were flooded from both sides because of the brook, water came down both from the gardens, and from the street side.



    “Our animals are still in the water—the pigs, the horse, the cow. This is not the first time weve been flooded, but its not been that bad in a long time. Its a disaster.



    “This keeps happening for several years now. We need a dam. There is so much work and so much spending every time this happens, and it happens a lot. Water is half the height of the house walls. As for the garden, you dont want to know. But we are especially upset about the house—the furniture, the flooring, everything.



    In some towns as well, basements have also been flooded, and in the north of Bucharest the sewage system was temporarily unable to handle the situation. Radio Romania correspondents from around the country report collapsed roads, traffic jams, landslides or disrupted railway transport.



    In the west of the country, the most affected area is Alba County, where heavy rains triggered landslides. Hundreds of households and industrial units went under water, and scores of people were left without homes. Bridges were also damaged, and so were national and county roads and streets. A railway bridge was also damaged by mudslides, causing the traffic to be suspended. Tens of military firefighters, gendarmes and police, as well as Volunteer Emergency Services personnel were deployed to address the problem.


    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • Floods hit Romania

    Floods hit Romania

    The heavy rainfalls of the recent days, assigned code yellow and orange alerts by meteorologists, have created massive problems in several parts of the country. Hydrologists have also issued several flood alerts valid in many counties, the most affected region being the north of the country, where a code red alert was in place. Flash floods were reported and the high water flow rates reached by several rivers have caused damage in scores of villages and towns.



    In the north of Romania, in Maramures County, a 63 year old man died on Wednesday, swept away by such an overflow. Several rivers flooded hundreds of hectares of farm land, pastures, households, national, county and local roads, while segments of railroad were silted up.



    In the affected areas, the authorities brought in sandbags, power pumps and other equipment in order to take the water out of the flooded households. In the village of Turbuta, in the north-west of the country, the pontoon bridge was rendered unusable, the only access way into the village being a ramshackle footbridge that makes it impossible for firefighters or ambulances to get there in case of emergency. People say the only solution is to wait for the waters to withdraw.



    Severe problems have also been reported in other villages, where roads have been affected by river overflows and the locals have to use by-pass routes. Farmers are the most upset, because many of them see their crops under water and the damage is substantial. The locals in many villages in the north of the country received warnings via the RO-Alert system, regarding a prospective major flash flood. Tens of people were evacuated, and more than 100 people called the 112 emergency number.



    In the south of Romania as well, the rainfall caused flooding that required the intervention of military firefighters, which brought in power pumps to help take out the water from peoples homes. Thousands of people were left without electricity.



    Meanwhile, the European Commission proposed an aid programme of over 8 million euros for the north-east of the country, which was severely affected by floods last summer. Following the heavy rains falling from mid-June to early August 2018, massive damage was caused in terms of infrastructure, farm land and housing in 6 counties in that region, particularly in Neamt, Bacau and Suceava. The Romanian authorities estimate that the rescue and civil protection operations cost nearly 295 million euros.



    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)

  • Floods hit Romania

    Floods hit Romania

    The heavy rainfalls of the recent days, assigned code yellow and orange alerts by meteorologists, have created massive problems in several parts of the country. Hydrologists have also issued several flood alerts valid in many counties, the most affected region being the north of the country, where a code red alert was in place. Flash floods were reported and the high water flow rates reached by several rivers have caused damage in scores of villages and towns.



    In the north of Romania, in Maramures County, a 63 year old man died on Wednesday, swept away by such an overflow. Several rivers flooded hundreds of hectares of farm land, pastures, households, national, county and local roads, while segments of railroad were silted up.



    In the affected areas, the authorities brought in sandbags, power pumps and other equipment in order to take the water out of the flooded households. In the village of Turbuta, in the north-west of the country, the pontoon bridge was rendered unusable, the only access way into the village being a ramshackle footbridge that makes it impossible for firefighters or ambulances to get there in case of emergency. People say the only solution is to wait for the waters to withdraw.



    Severe problems have also been reported in other villages, where roads have been affected by river overflows and the locals have to use by-pass routes. Farmers are the most upset, because many of them see their crops under water and the damage is substantial. The locals in many villages in the north of the country received warnings via the RO-Alert system, regarding a prospective major flash flood. Tens of people were evacuated, and more than 100 people called the 112 emergency number.



    In the south of Romania as well, the rainfall caused flooding that required the intervention of military firefighters, which brought in power pumps to help take out the water from peoples homes. Thousands of people were left without electricity.



    Meanwhile, the European Commission proposed an aid programme of over 8 million euros for the north-east of the country, which was severely affected by floods last summer. Following the heavy rains falling from mid-June to early August 2018, massive damage was caused in terms of infrastructure, farm land and housing in 6 counties in that region, particularly in Neamt, Bacau and Suceava. The Romanian authorities estimate that the rescue and civil protection operations cost nearly 295 million euros.



    (translated by: Ana-Maria Popescu)