N.Greece Gets Ready For More Flooding As Dam Opens in Bulgaria

Authorities in northeastern Greece's Evros prefecture have put the state on alert for flooding, as the volume of water in the Ardas River, a tributary of Evros River, is rising continuously, they said late on Monday.

Deputy regional director for Evros Dimitris Petrivits told the state owned ANA-MPA news agency that authorities had built metre-high levees randomly in the Kastanies settlement, at the borders with Bulgaria, that should be easy to strengthen if need be.

Petrovits noted the influx of water was increasing continuously after neighbouring Bulgaria authorities decided to open the Ivailograc dam to relieve the flooding after torrential rain, and stressed that Wednesday would be the most critical day, with the water reaching its highest volume in the Ardas. He said that the water takes approximately 12 hours to travel from Bulgaria to Greece.

The section of the national highway that borders with Bulgaria has been closed off because of flooding, while the customs office at Kastanies is also shut down.

Reference: ANA-MPA