A state of emergency was declared tonight in the area of the municipality of Novi Grad due to floods that occurred due to heavy rainfall, said the acting director of the Republic Administration of Civil Protection, Milan Novitović.
Novitović said that the Sana River is rising faster than expected, and that water is being pumped at 10 locations.
“Novi Grad is lower compared to the Sana river and that creates a problem and because of that water has to be pumped out,” explained Novitović.
Novitović said that the City of Banjaluka sent a sand filling machine and that additional filling will begin tonight.
He reminded that earlier today a state of emergency was also declared in Kostajnica, and that the situation in Dubica and Prijedor is not critical.
EMERGENCY DEFENSE MEASURES IN NOVI GRADO
The mayor of the municipality of Novi Grad, Miroslav Drljača, said that the water levels of the Una and Sana rivers have risen and that the openings on the quay next to the Una river have been closed with sandbags.
“A heavy downpour in the afternoon raised the underground water level from 70 cm to 150 cm, and in some locations underground water broke out. Tomorrow there will be no classes in all schools in the area of Novi Grad, and the “Pčelica Maja” kindergarten will not be open either.
He stated that traffic is interrupted on several local roads and again on the regional road in Suhača.
Since the afternoon, workers from local companies and institutions have been engaged and will be on duty during the night, as well as all competent services.
The harrow expects the water level to rise another 30 cm by morning.
So far, citizens have reported that water has entered 27 residential and auxiliary buildings.
The Republican Administration of Civil Protection has sent pumps and teams to Novi Grad to help local services, and tonight another larger pump and a sand-blasting machine arrived.
The water level of the Sana River is 548 cm, 12 cm higher than at 18:00 and the water level has risen by 11 cm since 18:00.
UNA IS GROWING IN THE KOSJANICA, BUT IT HAS NOT ENTERED HOMES
The water level of the Una River in Kostajnica continues to rise, but the water has not entered the residential buildings, said Nikola Janjetović, Srni Commander of the Municipal Headquarters for Emergency Situations.
“The water flooded the ancillary buildings in Ranka Šipka Street and surrounded the residential buildings, but did not enter the houses,” said Janjetović and pointed out that the water level of the Una River was 459 centimeters at 8:00 p.m.
He added that the water levels upstream and downstream of Kostajnica are rising, and that a further increase in the Una water level is expected in this local community.
According to him, traffic on the main road towards Kozarska Dubica is difficult due to water spilling onto the road.
Janjetović stated that additional sandbags are being filled tonight as well.
The headquarters for emergency situations declared a state of emergency today when the river Una reached 450 centimeters.
In the late afternoon, there was an interruption in the supply of electricity, but the supply was normalized around 8:15 p.m.
SANA IN PRIJEDOR CONTINUES TO GROW
In the area of Prijedor, the current water level of the Sana River is 453 centimeters and it is rising, but according to the data of the City Headquarters for Emergency Situations, the water level of this river in Ključ is falling, which could be encouraging for the coming hours, the City Administration announced.
The announcement states that, if there is no major rainfall in Sanski Most and Ključ, a slight drop in the water level of the Sana River is expected, and the Miloševica River is in its trough.
The mayor of Prijedor, Slobodan Javor, who is also the commander of the City Headquarters for emergency situations, is constantly on the ground with the on-duty teams of firefighters and civil protection.
“We did everything we could at the beginning of this year to increase the flow of the Milosevica River, and it certainly gave results,” Javor said.
In the afternoon, he visited Bišćane and Hambarine, where he delivered basic necessities and food to families whose houses were flooded with emergency services.
Intervention aid packages reached a six-member family in Bišćani, and in Ljubia, a nine-member family was evacuated due to the landslide and will be placed in the Center for Social Work.
At this time, a tour of Raškovec and Gomjenica, and other parts of the city where there is a threat of water spillage, is underway.
The press release states that the emergency services have another long night ahead of them, especially since the data shows that the water level of the Gomjenica river rose by 40 centimeters in just one hour.
According to data on the city’s website, the water level in Gomjenica is currently 504 centimeters.
Citizens who need help can call the hotline 123 or 052 231 811.
THERE IS NO DANGER FROM WATER PENETRATION INTO THE CITY AREA OF KOZARSKA DUBICA
In Kozarska Dubica, emergency flood defense measures are in force, for now there is no danger of water entering the city area, nor is there any need to declare an emergency situation, it was stated tonight at the meeting of the Municipal Headquarters for Emergency Situations.
The commander of the municipal staff for emergency situations, Radenko Reljić, said that at the meeting they analyzed the results of the measures taken so far and concluded that there are no critical points that could endanger the population.
“A wave of water from the direction of Bihać is expected during tomorrow, and we have manpower and machinery ready for quick interventions,” said Reljić, who is also the mayor of the municipality of Kozarska Dubica.
He pointed out that all the members of the Emergency Situations Staff agreed tonight that there is no need to declare an emergency in the area of the municipality of Kozarska Dubica, but that preventive action, constant monitoring, communication and readiness of all competent services are necessary.
At the meeting, it was confirmed that in the city area, critical points on the city market and closed culverts on the quay have been secured, and that help was sent to the municipality of Kostajnica today.
With the water level of the Una at 445 and the Sava at 817 centimeters, there are no flooded residential or commercial buildings in Kozarska Dubica.
Due to the rising trend of the Una river of four centimeters per hour, the Emergency Situations Headquarters expects the suspension of traffic on the highway Kozarska Dubica-Kostajnica in Špilja, in which case an alternative road route via Verija will be used.
The meeting appealed to the citizens to follow the official means of information about the development of the situation caused by the heavy rainfall, and the competent services will be engaged during the night with the aim of monitoring the situation regarding the water level and embankment.
(Srna/World)