Written by Maruška Mileta (Croatia), YFoEE Steering group member
More than a million people displaced, thousands who have lost everything, more than three dozens confirmed deaths and still counting, hundreds of thousands left without clean water and electricity – the devastating consequences of the recent floods that have hit Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), Serbia and Croatia.
Young Friends of the Earth Europe is calling for solidarity with the people of the Balkans, and especially our friends and comrades in the Centre for Environment in Bosnia and Herzegovina who are coordinating much of the needed help.
What are probably one of the worst floods in Europe for a long time, have hit, yet again, the poorest and least resilient people hardest. Experts are comparing the size of the affected areas as being bigger than the size of Slovenia and comparable to the size of Israel. It will take weeks only for all the water to withdraw and the economical damages are unthinkable. In Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH), 13 municipalities including towns Banja Luka, Bijeljina, Brcko, Bratunac, Doboj, Modrica, Šamac, Srebrenica, Prijedor, Brod, Prnjavor, Sekovici and Zvornik have been flooded. The town Doboj was flooded within minutes. An entire village, Paraće, near town of Kalesia in Northwest Bosnia, has been completely destroyed by landslides, which are still a huge threat in many parts of the country. And now even the many mines leftover from the war in the 90s are beginning to surface.
A Croatian journalist visited the villages Kopanice and Vidovice near Orašje in BiH which were completely flooded, and reported that Kopanice was eight feet under water on Friday and that the water won’t withdraw even within a month. But not everyone has left their homes, some live on the top floor of the house, guarding what they could salvage. One of the most severe waves of flooding took place during the night of Friday 16th May, in Obrenovac, a small town part of Belgrade municipality, where the dam broke and the river flooded the whole town within only a few hours. More than 13,000 people had to be evacuated. Other cities in Serbia such as Sabac, Svilajnac, Krupanj, Smederevska Palanka, Krupanj, Bajina Basta, Mali Zvornik and many smaller and poorer ones are also devastated. In Croatia, the Eastern region called Slavonia was heavily flooded.
But in the face of this tragedy, ordinary people like you and me have shown the goodness of their hearts and solidarity that transcends borders. There are still, sadly, many issues leftover from decades of conflicts, but what is important to say is that in this region, people aren’t waiting for their governments to help – they rely only on themselves and their neighbours. It’s the quick self organising and solidarity that the ordinary people of our countries have shown by helping and giving what they can – collecting clothes, food, basic things, organising benefits, hosting people in their homes, taking in rescued animals, building barriers, cleaning up and so on – that is extraordinary. Volunteer rescue teams, but also ordinary citizens have saved hundreds of human and animal lives, many of whom are now cleaning the devastated areas.
How to help?
The main question now is how to recover from such a tragedy? People who have finally started to put behind the memories of the war and sufferings in the 90s, have now lost their homes, family members, everything again.
And the real struggle after the floods is only starting – with the withdrawal of the water, thousands of dead animals are surfacing, streets need cleaning, destroyed houses will need rebuilding, people will need jobs as many have lost their sources of income, and the list goes on and on.
Many countries have already sent help like rescue teams, helicopters, boats, food, water, clothes, etc., but the affected people of these countries now need all the help possible. From water and food supplies, to medicine, basic hygienic products, water pumps, and so on.
Please find on this website all the information about what is needed and how to help from abroad.
You can also follow social media for any updates on how to help: #poplave2014 #poplave #BosniaFloods #SerbiaFloods #CroatiaFloods #BalkanFloods
Thank you and let’s show that solidarity knows no border!
And let’s not turn our heads away from the consequences of climate change anywhere in the world. It is affecting everyone here and now.