A mother and her children brave the flood of the Dragonja River, on the border between Croatia and Slovenia, in the last stage of their desperate migratory journey from Turkey to the heart of Europe. The first two, the elder of 18 and the youngest of 5, manage to cross the natural border between the two countries. A 13-year-old grandson is still waiting on the Croatian side, when the 47-year-old woman and 10-year-old girl are swept away by the too strong current. While the mother clings as best she can to the trunk of a tree in the river bed, the child, who according to the first reconstructions was clinging to her shoulders, is dragged away.
The intervention of the first responders – a Croatian and a Slovenian policeman, together with a local resident – at around 8 pm yesterday managed to save the woman, who was then taken to hospital in “poor physical condition” with risk of hypothermia and in state of shock; but of the little girl, who according to the authorities would be disabled, there are no more traces, causing fear of yet another tragedy of migration.