Balkans Militaries Mobilize To Assist With Worst Floods In Decades - AFP

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The armies of several central and eastern European countries were mobilizing to cope with heavy rains and floods which have killed nearly 70 people in the region this summer, with Romania and Bulgaria the worst hit. In Bulgaria, the army was called out both near the capital Sofia and in the country's east, two regions where at least 24 people have been killed and 14,000 left homeless in flooding since June.

The troops are clearing river beds, building dikes and rebuilding bridges, houses and roads, Defence Minister Vesselin Bliznakov told bTV television on Monday. "The army has cancelled a (military) exercise in order to help out in the devastated regions," Bliznakov said. The flooding has also destroyed farmland in Bulgaria, sending the prices of vegetables soaring to double their normal rate.

The UN's World Health Organisation estimated last week that one in four Bulgarians have been directly affected by the flooding. In neighbouring Romania, the worst affected country in the region, the toll from atrocious weather over the past week rose on Monday to 18, with one missing.

Storms since Tuesday have hit nearly 500 towns and villages in the north and centre, destroying some 200 homes and damaging more than 4,000 others, as well as about 700 bridges. More than 1,400 residents have been evacuated from flooded areas while hundreds of police and soldiers were deployed to help victims. In July, Romania experienced its worst flooding in 30 years, leaving 24 people dead and causing damage estimated at 650 million euros (780 million dollars).

EDIT

http://www.terradaily.com/2005/050822161630.gopjlmyg.html