Various problems in Serbia and surrounding countries caused by heavy snowfalls and strong winds continue to occur. The situation now seems to be worst in Surdulica region in south-east Serbia, where a state of emergency has been declared. Due to recent bad weather, almost all roads in that area are impassable. As has been the case with other parts of the country, the roads prove to be very hard to clean as snow continues to fall and winds don’t seem to be stopping anytime soon either. Such weather has also damaged electric power infrastructure and there are now severe disruptions to electricity supply. Local officials have organized a service which is trying to reach people farthest away and deliver them food and medical supplies.

Crna Trava region, which was the focus of last week’s report from Serbia, has seen the situation improve and then deteriorate yet again. Mid-week it seemed that everything was as good as it could be reasonably expected to be- the vast majority of roads had been cleaned, electricity supply was running smoothly and snow had started melting due to rising temperatures. However, snowfalls have since started and because of that some local roads are impassable. On top of everything, Saturday early morning brought some strong winds which damaged power lines and left people without electricity. Those in need of medical assistance will be attended to with the help of people cleaning the roads, an official from Serbian Ministry of Interior has told the media.

Although excessive precipitation continues to make people’s lives difficult, it has been welcomed by those in Serbia’s tourism industry. Hotel owners claim this year was one of the best they have ever had, mainly because of the great amounts of snow on mountains. This might come as only a small consolation to those suffering because of the weather, as the country’s economy is in very bad shape and successful companies here are few and far between.

Photo: Knjaževačke vesti