The Bulgarian Danube is still navigable but restricted

The water level of the Danube continues to fall. They are approaching the record lows set at the end of September during the driest years. The sections near Svishtov are the most critical for navigation, Ivelin Zanev, Director of the Executive Agency for the Study and Maintenance of the Danube, told BNR.

"Many barge convoys are waiting to transit the river. In the Bulgarian section, the depth is around 1.6 metres in the Belene and Batina areas, whereas it is at least 1.8 metres everywhere else. Shipping will not be suspended for administrative reasons unless an incident occurs. However, shipowners may decide that transporting their cargo is not cost-effective, " Zanev explained to Asya Pencheva, BNR’s correspondent in Ruse.

The International Danube Commission has announced that the cruise ship VIKING ULLUR, which ran aground nearly a week ago near the village of Gomotartsi, just before Vidin, has now been refloated.

• European tourists evacuated from ship stranded on the Danube near Vidin
• Kozloduy NPP continues to operate despite low level of the Danube

Editor: Ivo Ivanov