Serbia On High Alert for More Floods

Receding water has freed towns in Serbia of the danger of flooding, but has left behind mud and silt that now pose a problem in the affected areas.

Predrag Maric, director of the Interior Ministry sector for emergency situations told Serbia's national TV station, RTS, that information that the government had received from the Hydrometeorological Institute and from Russian colleagues suggested that Serbia needs to prepare for the worst scenario.

Maric said Serbia will have to remain on high alert and will have to monitor river levels until the end of spring.

"Our Russian colleagues have projected that from 80 to 100 liters of rain will fall between March 8 and March 10," he said.

"Our predictions are significantly lower. But I don't think that we should play with human lives by choosing to trust one or the other source, and if someone points out that there is a possibility [of floods], as a responsible country you have to do everything to protect human lives," Maric added.

He said an Operational Headquarters had been formed, which is in permanent session and will define the crisis points day by day.

"We are raising the capacities of the sector for emergency situations, the police and the military who will be put on stand-by during the next few days," Maric said.

Asked whether Serbia's rivers can absorb all the predicted rainfall, Maric said that the ground was already soaked, which was one reason why everything is on hold until the end of spring.

Maric added that this was no cause for panic, but that it would be irresponsible to deny the threat and not inform the public about it.

Rivers in Serbia are receding at different paces, but the situation appears more peaceful now than it was over the past few days.

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