Jablanca : Sudden flash floods and landslides across Bosnia and Herzegovina led to the death of 13 people and left dozens injured, reported Al Jazeera on Saturday. The flash floods which happened yesterday led to rescue teams searching for people amidst the rubble and debris.
The spokesperson for the government of Herzegovina-Neretva Canton, Darko Juka, said on Saturday that 13 people were killed in the Jablanica area due to the collapse of a hill, landslides and floods in the region. Heavy rain overnight halted rescue efforts before they resumed on Saturday, Bosnian media reported. Aerial views of the affected locations showed massive flooding in the residential areas of the country.
Al Jazeera noted that people were caught by surprise thus not having the time to evacuate from their homes. It was noted that the landslide was triggered due to the sudden rainfall which resulted in stripping off the stone and rubble from a nearby quarry.
The flash floods have resulted in far and wide ranging impacts across the country. Bosnia's Central Election Commission decided to postpone local elections scheduled for the weekend at the affected municipalities, but to carry on with voting at other places.
This summer, the Balkans were also hit by long-lasting record temperatures, causing a drought. Scientists said the dried-out land has hampered the absorption of floodwaters, Al Jazeera noted.
According to the World Bank Group's Climate Change Knowledge Portal, with floods accounting for over 60 per cent of the climate disaster burden in Bosnia since 1980s, the country is at a great risk of hydro meteorological hazards, through seasonal flooding and periods of drought.
Heavy rainstorms that cause mudslides and flooding of large areas of agricultural land, houses and industrial buildings, and lead to other changes in the environment. The climate crisis of Bosnia are a reminder that despite accounting for 0.05 per cent share of global greenhouse gases emissions, the country ranks amongst the top 40 countries most vulnerable to climate change, UNDP's climate promise notes. Flooding was also reported in Croatia and Montenegro this week but caused less damage and no fatalities.