Bulgaria faces warnings of flash flooding of rivers

Bulgaria’s National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology has issued a warning of possible flash flooding of numerous rivers for October 3, while the European flood warning system has warned of an expected worsening of the situation in parts of the country.

According to the institute’s website, flash flooding is possible in parts of the Yantra, Vit, Danube, Kamchia and Arda rivers, among others.

As The Sofia Globe reported earlier, Bulgaria’s national meteorological bureau has issued the Code Orange warning of dangerous weather for several districts for October 3 because of forecast heavy rain.

On October 2, Interior Minister Daniel Mitov called a meeting due to the worsening weather situation in the country and warnings of dangerous rainfall.

The meeting was attended by representatives of the Ministries of Environment and Water, Regional Development and Public Works, Transport and Communications, Energy, as well as the National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology and the National Association of Municipalities in the Republic of Bulgaria.

“In addition to the forecasts of the weather forecasters, this morning the national operations centre received official information from the European Flood Warning System about the expected complication of the situation on October 3 in certain areas of the country,” Mitov said.

Snow was falling and starting to build up on the Petrohan Pass, Meteo Bulgaria said on its Facebook page on October 2. There was no equipment to clean the pass and it could be temporarily closed to traffic.

Snow was still falling on the Rila and Vitosha mountains.

In a post on Facebook, Sofia mayor Vassil Terziev said that the municipality has ordered sanding of Vitosha and is monitoring the situation. It is currently calm, there are no reports of complications or problems with traffic, the municipality said. They warned motorists to be equipped with winter tyres and chains in the mountains. 

The day started with low temperatures and torrential rain, and it is expected that the rain will turn into wet snow in western Bulgaria on the night of October 2.

The European Centre for Transport Policies warns of the danger of aquaplaning on the Hemus highway. The torrential rain currently poses a huge risk to motorists.

“The conditions for tourism in the mountains are bad, a hurricane wind is blowing on Botev Peak,” the Mountain Rescue Service of the Bulgarian Red Cross said.

The Facebook page “Vitosha Planina” warned of heavy snowfall on Vitosha in the deciduous belt.

“Expectations are that there will be many overhanging and broken trees and branches that will block the paths and roads in the mountain. If possible, postpone all walks to the mountain before the weather conditions normalise, keeping in mind that it may take longer to clear the roads and paths,” the post said. “In recent years, there has not been such heavy snowfall at such a stage of vegetation in the beech belt.”

Borislav Sandov, a former environment minister who is the co-leader of the Green Movement, said: “A serious cold snap and local intense rainfall are coming, caused by a climate anomaly. In some places, precipitation that is the norm for an entire month may fall within one day. “This is especially dangerous for areas where the drought of recent months has reduced the moisture content in the soil to a minimum. Floods are possible there,” he said.

The Road Infrastructure Agency said on October 2 that In the high mountain regions, the rain was turning into snow.

“Motorists who are about to travel should set off with cars with suitable tyres, drive carefully, at a reasonable speed and without risky overtaking,” the agency said.

The agency said that regional road departments and road maintenance companies are monitoring the weather forecasts and are ready to take the necessary actions to treat the pavements in the high-mountainous regions, where low temperatures and precipitation create conditions for slipperiness and icing, especially early in the morning.

It is expected that in the period November 1 to 15, depending on the weather conditions, winter maintenance of the national road network will be introduced throughout the country, the agency said.

“If the weather forecasters predict a continued decrease in temperatures, it is possible that winter maintenance in the high mountain regions and passes, where temperatures are lower and there are prerequisites for slipperiness and icing, especially early in the morning, will be introduced even earlier,” it said.

The goal is for preventive and then snow removal activities to begin as quickly as possible when the weather is forecast to deteriorate, in order to ensure the passability of the roads.

The Road Infrastructure Agency appealed to motorists to start preparing their vehicles for driving during the winter months, not to wait for the first sub-zero temperatures, and to monitor the good technical condition of the vehicle.

(Archive photo, from September 2023: Road Infrastructure Agency)