In Podgora, damage being assessed, locals blame Croatian Waters

In Podgora, the damage caused by the storm is being assessed. Last night, the water receded from the streets and from most of the houses. Firefighters also cleared the creeks in the area so that the water could flow and not spill into the streets. Locals blame the Croatian Waters Agency for the non-maintenance of the disputed stream.

The reason is the bare slopes of Biokovo and unmaintained streams

"Everything is in the mud. Everything has failed, everything is in the mud", "The man has two cars flooded, two apartments on the ground floor of the house", are some of the reactions of locals.

“Large amounts of mud and rocks are on the roads, certain roads have collapsed so that it is not possible to pass through Gornja Podgora, and I appeal to citizens not to try until the situation is rectified. We also have a lot of damage to private buildings where the basements and ground floors are flooded,” said Podgora Municipal Leader Petra Radić.

She emphasized that there are 36 streams in the Podgora area that are inactive without water, but become active when the rain fills them, which happened yesterday. She added that the mechanization of Croatian Waters will clean all the streams in the coming days so that water flows through them without obstacles.

According to her, after the list of damages to the houses is done, the exact amount will be known. She only added that the damage is measured "in millions".

“The multi-kilometer fire north of the sea left wasteland and bare areas without vegetation, and large landslides were created in the flash flood of water, which deposited huge amounts of mud and rocks into the torrent, creating blockages and obstructing the flow of water, which then spilled in all directions. Locals of Podgora are in emotional shock, but the most important thing is that no one was hurt,” said Radić.

"Croatian Waters is to blame for everything"

“Rehabilitation is underway. Construction machines are moving the stones that the water brought in, the cellars and taverns in buildings are being cleaned. What generations have created has been completely destroyed,” reported journalist Branko Dobrota from Podgora.

The catering facility on the waterfront, which had been there for 43 years, was also destroyed. The owner, Nevenka Kokić, said that the water came from all sides in five minutes yesterday.

“On the side of the house and the building, there is a stream that got blocked and the water spilled onto our building. The tavern, warehouse, kitchen, and restaurant were submerged. Everything, everything we had, nothing is working anymore and will not be able to be. Firefighters are now cleaning, throwing things out, everything can be thrown away,” she said.

She added that such a situation also happened in 2000 and that the same stream "destroyed" them twice. She asserted that "Croatian Waters is to blame for everything because no one ever cleans that stream".

The disputed stream, namely, is connected to the southern slopes of the Biokovo Mountain, which were recently ravaged by fire. Locals claim that these streams are full of burnt wood and stones and that the drain was not functioning. What happened happened, fortunately, without human casualties.

The government will help repair the damage

“I spoke with the prefect Blaženko Boban and the mayor Petra Radić about the situation in Podgora and the consequences of the flood. Competent services are on the ground, and the most important thing is that there are no human victims. I expressed my support and readiness for the Government to help repair the damage,” announced Prime Minister Andrej Plenković on X.

The torrent carried everything before it

All services were struggling with the consequences of the heavy downpour, during which as much as 140 liters of rain per square meter fell yesterday afternoon, in a little over one hour. The torrent carried everything before it, there were landslides, buried roads and flooded basements, yards and business premises. Due to the thunderstorm, 3,000 people were left without electricity.

Source: HRT