site.btaWater Service Restored, Rebuilding People’s Homes after Floods Long Process, Authorities Say

Water service to Sevlievo and other settlements in the region of Gabrovo that were left without drinking water due to a rupture in the city’s main water supply line was restored shortly before midnight, the Regional Development and Public Works Ministry announced on Tuesday.

On Monday, Regional Development Minister Ivan Shishkov visited the site and, together with Labour and Social Policy Minister Nataliya Efremova and Agriculture and Food Minister Plamen Abrovski, inspected the progress of the facility’s restoration. Due to the rising water level of the Vidima River following the rainfall on May 22, an 87-meter-long section of the bridge had been washed away.

On May 23, Sevlievo and the surrounding area experienced severe flooding following heavy rainfall and rising river levels. A state of emergency was declared for the entire Gabrovo region after the floodwaters inundated parts of the city, cut off water and power supplies in the affected areas, and demanded the evacuation of residents. In some places, the water reached about 1.20 meters, and volunteers and institutions built protective dikes and provided assistance to the population.

Speaking to bTV on Tuesday morning, Chief Commissioner Alexander Dzhartov, Director of the General Directorate Fire Safety and Civil Protection said that "at this time, there is no immediate danger to people. The situation is gradually returning to normal, but the process of restoring people’s homes after the floods will take a while."

"Over the past 24 hours, we received reports regarding the drainage of basements, ground floors, and shafts, primarily in the Gabrovo region. In the Veliko Tarnovo region, we have not received any reports requiring our intervention," Dzhartov said. He added that with any major disaster unfolding over a large area, the first priority is to understand what is happening. "In this case, we had significant flooding primarily in two regions, as well as in the Lovech region, but not on such a large scale," Dzhartov added.

Over the weekend, a state of emergency was declared in several municipalities in the regions of Veliko Tarnovo, Gabrovo, and Lovech due to heavy rainfall that began on Friday night and the subsequent overflowing of rivers and dam lakes. In some towns, people had to be evacuated, homes and yards were flooded, and roads were closed.