Bulgaria floods: New torrential rains hit Dobrich
A new bout of torrential rain hit the Bulgarian town of Dobrich on the afternoon of June 24, five days after the deadly floods that deluged Dobrich and part of Varna.
The rain that lashed Dobrich on June 24 caused concern among residents, while weather forecasters predicted more heavy rain in north-eastern Bulgaria later in the week.
The regional health inspectorate called on people in the Dobrich area to drink only bottled water and to use domestic supplies of water for cooking only after boiling it.
Two lorries carrying more than 4000 10-litre mineral water bottles arrived in the town on June 24, with two more expected by the end of the day.
The situation in the Dobrich region remained dire, public broadcaster Bulgarian National Television said, with some areas still without electricity.
Volunteers were assisting in clearing debris, included damaged furniture borne away by floodwaters, in the area that was inundated on June 19.
The municipality was providing food and shelter to all volunteers in the town. Mobile teams were continously delivering food parcels and bottled water to people hard-hit by the floods.
In the Asparouhovo area of the Bulgarian Black Sea city of Varna, the level of groundwater remained high, mayor Ivan Portnih said at a municipal crisis staff briefing on June 24.
Landslides had been triggered in several parts of Asparouhovo and all landslide areas were being inspected. Where areas were found to be hazardous, further evacuation of households would be needed, he said.
The Bulgarian Red Cross said that its fundraising campaign for flood victims had received 214 800 leva.
Volunteers from the Bulgarian Red Cross had been on the scene for four days, assisting more than 3000 people with basic necessities, water and materials to clean their homes.
Separately, provisional government estimates are than between 12 million and 15 million leva will be needed to repair parts of the national road network damaged by the recent floods in Bulgaria.
For the Veliko Turnovo area alone, five million leva will be needed, of which 500 000 leva will be needed to repair the Pass of the Republic. It is expected that the pass will reopen to traffic by the end of July 2014.
