Optimism in Thrace as Evros level drops
Floodwaters were abating yesterday on Greece’s Turkish border in Thrace, after the level of the swollen Evros River dropped and officials expressed hopes the worst was over. Over 2,200 hectares of land along the river had been inundated – some intentionally, so as to prevent greater damage to settlements and crops – since Thursday, when the Evros, swollen by heavy rains, broke its banks. A state of emergency was declared for the region. There were no injuries, and no inhabited areas were affected, while yesterday the water level was down to 6.08 meters, from 6.25. Following a crisis meeting yesterday, officials said they had managed to avert the worst, in cooperation with Turkish authorities on the other side of the river. «The water level has dropped,» Minister for Macedonia and Thrace Nikos Tsiartsionis told journalists. «The situation remains crucial… but we appear to be past the peak of this crisis.»
