Mura levee gash closed, but water volumes remain high
Črenšovci, 6 August - Fire brigades and two chopper crews have been working around the clock on Sunday to plug a massive gash that opened up in a levee on the Mura river near the village of Dolnja Bistrica last night, with several hundred locals finally allowed to come home this afternoon.
Dolnja Bistrica
A house is flooded by the Mura river.
Photo: Jure Zauneker/Vestnik
A Slovenian military helicopter and a chopper sent by Croatia positioned concrete blocks along the 20-metre stretch of damaged levee.
Crews at the site were working throughout the night, said Defence Minister Marjan Šarec, as he visited the site today.
Currently, water is being pumped out of flooded houses and sandbags are being placed along long stretches of the levee for protection, as the worst is not over yet and flooding is feared virtually all along the river, which winds through a very flat landscape.
Briefing the media earlier today, hydrologist Janez Polajnar said that the volume of water in the Mura measured upon entry into Slovenia in Gornja Radgona reached a record of over 1,450 cubic metres this morning.
The water masses are expected to pass through Slovenia in the next 24 hours. By the afternoon, the volume measured in Gornja Radgona decreased to 1,419 cubic metres.
Mura exits Slovenia some 30 kilometres downstream from Gornja Radgona, only a few kilometres south-east of Dolnja Bistrica, where water spilled across a large area. Mura also spilled in many areas upstream, but so far water remained roughly within the usual flood plains.
Šarec praised the civil protection forces in the region and warned people against nearing the levee.
While in Pomurje, he also noted that Slovenia has requested international assistance, saying that the Croatian helicopter was the first to arrive.
Hungary is also sending a helicopter, as well as an engineering team. He expects more assistance, also in the form of machinery and work force.