Crisis Overview
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Continuous, heavy rainfall, commencing on 13 May, has resulted in extensive flooding in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), and Croatia.
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Three months’ worth of rain fell in only three days; it is the heaviest rainfall in BiH since records began in 1894.
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In Serbia, more than 1.6 million people are affected by the floods (22% of the population). The most affected areas include Belgrade City and the municipalities of Obrenovac, Lazarevac and Grocka.
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In BiH, an estimated 1.5 million people are affected (39% of the population). The most affected areas are Bosanski Šamac, Odžak, Orašje, Doboj, Bijeljina, Brčko,
Maglaj. -
In Croatia, 38,000 people are affected. The most affected towns and villages are Gunja, Rajevo Selo, Račinovci, Posavski Podgajci, Vrbanja, Drenovci, Strošinci, Đurići and Bošnjaci
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As of 22 May, more than 120,000 households in Serbia are without electricity, and as of 19 May, more than one million people do not have access to water in BiH.
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3,500km (2,175 miles) of roads in Serbia need repair. Schools remain closed in the affected areas.
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The economic impact is enormous. Preliminary estimates show recovery costs of more than one billion euros (USD 1.4 billion) in Serbia and hundreds of millions of euros for BiH. In Croatia, damage to agriculture alone is expected to reach at least 30 million euros
Impact of Crisis
Killed
Flooding has led to at least 53 deaths. This figure could increase if more bodies are discovered in houses and farms swamped by the floods and landslides (AFP 22/05/2014).
As of 21 May, 27 people had lost their lives during the floods in Serbia, of whom at least 10 or 11 died of natural causes (GoS 21/05/2014). In BiH, as of 22 May, a total of 24 people had been killed, of whom 7 were from the Federation of BiH and 17 were from the Republic Srpska (UNCT BiH 22/05/2014). Two have been killed in Croatia.
Evacuations
As of 22 May, 31,879 people have been evacuated and rescued from the affected areas in Serbia; 24,000 were evacuated from Obrenovac. People have also been evacuated from Sremska Mitrovica (660) and from the municipalities of Jamena, Šid and Morović (780) (RoS Sit rep #9 22/05/2014). In BiH, according to local media, quoting government sources, a total of 950,000 people have had to evacuate their homes since the beginning of the floods (ECHO 22/05/2014). More than 11,000 people had been evacuated within Croatia (Vecernji list 22/05/2014), including nearly 4,000 in Gunja, where waters flooded the whole village, as well as most of the population of Đurići, Račinovc,
Rajevo Selo, Posavski Podgajci, Bošnjaci and Vrbanja (Duzs 22/05/2014).
Worst Affected Regions and Populations
Serbia: As of 20 May, more than 1.6 million people are affected by the floods in Serbia (AFP 20/05/2014). Belgrade City and the municipalities of Obrenovac, Lazarevac and Grocka are currently the most affected (IFRC 21/05/2014). The most difficult situation is near Belgrade (Obrenovac, Lazarevac, Kostolac, Šabac, Sremska Mitrovica, Krupanj,
Raća, Jamena, Šid and Adaševci) (GoS). The consequences of floods are most severe in districts of Kolubara, Mačva and Morava; the cities of Valjevo, Šabac, Loznica, Čačak and Zaječar; and municipalities Obrenovac, Osečina, Koceljeva, Lajkovac, Ub,
Ljig, Gornji Milanovac, Rekovac, Mali Zvornik, Požega, Vladimirci, Kosjerić, Lučani,
Trstenik, Mionica, Rača and Doljevac (RoS Sit rep #8 21/05/2014).
Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH): As of 22 May it is estimated that 1.5 million people, in 60 municipalities in BiH, are affected by the floods (ECHO 22/05/2014). Affected areas are Tuzla canton, Sarajevo canton, Zenica-Doboj canton, Bosnia-Podrinje canton,
Una-Sana canton, Brčko district, and the regions of Banja Luka, Doboj, Bijeljina,
Odžak, Bosanski Šamac and Srebrenica. The most affected are Bosanski Šamac,
Odžak, Orašje, Doboj, Bijeljina, Brčko, Maglaj (UNCT BiH 22/05/2014).
Croatia: As of 22 May, 38,000 people are affected by the floods in Croatia (AFP 22/05/2014). The most affected towns and villages are Gunja, Rajevo Selo, Račinovci,
Posavski Podgajci, Vrbanja, Drenovci, Strošinci, Đurići and Bošnjaci (Index Novac 21/05/2014).