Bulgarian cabinet approves further 28M leva to aid disaster-hit areas
Bulgaria’s cabinet has agreed to provide a further 28.1 million leva (about 14.3 million euro) for projects to prevent and overcome the effects of recent natural disasters in parts of the country.
Almost the entire amount, 27 million leva, will go to municipalities to pay for repairs to infrastructure, the cabinet said on April 15 2015.
The rest will go to cover expenses of ministries, of which half will be used to shore up dams and reservoirs damaged in the heavy snowfall and rains of recent months.
The funding includes 3.1 million leva for clearing the bed of the Otmanliiska River in Bourgas municipality, 997 000 leva for clearing gullies in Varna municipality, 909 000 leva for building a drainage facility and retaining walls in the village of Manolich in the Surgurlare municipality, 856 000 leva to restore a bridge in Plovdiv, 811 000 leva to fix streets in the village of Dolishte in the Aksakovo area and 800 000 leva to repair and strengthen the banks of the river Berkovska in Berkovitsa.
Other sums include 787 000 leva to repair a road overpass over the Sofia-Varna railway line and a road approach to the village of Telish in the Cherven Bryag municipality, 796 000 leva for measures to prevent overflowing of the Popovska River in the town of Popova, and 764 000 leva for restoration of the course and bridges at the Kranevska River in Balchik.
At the beginning of April, the cabinet approved close to 14 million leva to deal with the effects of heavy snowfalls and floods in recent months. The funds were primarily intended for reimbursement of the costs of clearing the road infrastructure, construction of temporary levees and cleaning of critical parts of the riverbeds.
The funding is to come from reserves for unforeseen and urgent spending provided for in the 2015 national Budget, the cabinet said.