Brussels, 16/05/2014 (Agence Europe) - With the Serbian and Bosnian authorities having just declared a state of alert in the face of the most serious flooding in these two countries in over a century, the EU Civil Protection Mechanism was activated during the evening of Thursday 15 May. This paves the way for the imminent dispatch of rescue material and emergency workers from several member states.
The two countries are currently affected by heavy rainfall, at times over twice the seasonal average. In the face of this disaster, Serbia - where three people have died and 5,000 people been evacuated because of the floods - has just accepted large capacity water pumps from Germany and Bulgaria, as well as rescue teams equipped with motor boats. Austria and Luxembourg have also offered pumps to Bosnia and Herzegovina, while Slovenia has proposed sending out two helicopters and rescue boats. The European Commission has sent the two countries satellite images of the damaged areas. The management of this European support is handled by the European Commission's Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC). (JK)