The water level in the Danube River in Serbia has dropped to a historically critical minimum, which has not been recorded in the last 100 to 150 years.
The news was officially announced by Serbian Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Ivica Dacic, and the information was quickly disseminated by world agencies, including TASS and the regional television RTV.
Extreme drought and abnormal heat have created serious problems in Serbia. The situation on the Danube-Tisa-Danube canal reclamation system is particularly severe. The critical drying up of the river is directly hindering the work of fire departments, which are currently battling more than 32 active forest fires in the country, including in the delicate Deliblat Sands ecozone. For the first time, authorities were forced to activate a specialized fire and rescue ship capable of filling 24 fire engines at the same time, in order not to overload the local water supply network.
In addition to a logistical nightmare for firefighters, the low level of the Danube has paralyzed river navigation in northern Serbia. The drying up has left dozens of vessels stranded in one place for days. As an unexpected side effect of the historic drought, the remains of long-sunken ships dating back to World War II have surfaced. The drought has also hit the energy sector in the region – Hydroelectric power plants in Serbia are operating at reduced capacity, Hungary is considering sinking old barges to raise the water level around the Paks NPP, and Romania has partially reduced capacity at the Cerna Voda NPP.