After heavy torrential rain inundated numerous locations around Slovenia on Thursday and Friday, at least four people died and thousands were forced to flee; the damage was estimated at 500 million euros ($550 million).
The floods that occurred on Thursday and Friday, according to the country’s prime minister Robert Golob, were “the biggest natural disaster” that the Alpine nation had seen in the past 30 years.
Golob asserts that hundreds of homes and other buildings, as well as roads and energy infrastructure, were all significantly impacted by the floods.Â
He added that thousands of people had to be evacuated due to the flooding, and many others were rescued by firefighters on boats or by helicopters.
The Slovenian army has also contributed to the rescue operation, sending troops to isolated districts in the north, Al-Jazeera reported.
According to the prime minister, two million people who live on a third of the country’s land were impacted.
Two Dutch climbers were also among those who perished on Friday in the mountains close to Kranj, most likely as a result of being struck by lightning, according to police, local media reported.
In addition to the casualties caused by the disaster on Friday, a woman died in the town of Kamnik, which is located 20 kilometres (12.5 miles) north of the Slovenian capital, Ljubljana.
Slovenia was guaranteed support from the union by the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen who also stated in a tweet that the destruction in Slovenia was “heartbreaking”.
A deadly landslide on Saturday prompted rescue efforts for 110 people, including 30 tourists in Dravograd, close to the Austrian border.
Furthermore, The town, which is situated at the meeting point of the Drava, Meze, and Mislinje rivers, was in danger of another landslide.
