Low water levels restrict navigation on the Danube

Navigation on the Danube has been restricted due to low water levels, the Executive Agency for Exploration and Maintenance of the Danube River, based in Ruse, has announced.

At present, two vessels have run aground in the sections near the villages of Somovit and Zagrazhden, BNR correspondent Asya Pencheva reported from the Danube city of Ruse.

The prolonged drought and persistent heat across Central Europe and the entire Danube River basin have led to critically low water levels, hampering navigation, affecting the management of protected natural areas and limiting the use of river water.

The navigable channel has narrowed in the areas around the islands of Belene, Vardim and Batin. Ships are being forced to wait before passing through these sections, while some vessels have had to reduce their cargo loads. Exceptionally low water levels have now been recorded along the entire Bulgarian-Romanian stretch of the Danube, with forecasts indicating that the unfavourable trend is expected to continue in the coming days.

Edited by Miglena Ivanova
English: R. Petkova