Torrential rains cause severe floodings along the Bulgarian southern Black sea coast, state of emergency in the town of Tsarevo, people urged to go to higher floors (update)

The torrential rains on September 5 caused unprecedented floods in the Bulgarian southern Black Sea towns and resorts, with the town of Tsarevo being the hardest hit. A state of emergency has been declared in the town. Prime Minister Acad. Nikolay Denkov is expected to arrive. For the time being there are no reports of casualties.

Residents and tourists are urged to go to the upper floors to avoid falling victim to the severe flooding that has already inundated the first floors of some hotels in the resort town. The situation is so severe that some of the parked cars are under water and only their roofs can been seen. There are also reports of cars being swept out to the sea.

There are also houses and hotels with access cut off. Authorities are appealing for calm.

By order of the mayor of the municipality of Tsarevo, a state of disaster has been declared on the territory of the municipality and the evacuation of some of the people in the areas affected by the rains has been ordered.

Footage on social media networks shows cars under water in Tsarevo and the river flooded Nestinarka beach. There is also a destroyed bridge.

The municipality of Tsarevo has warned that traffic to the Vasiliko district has been cut off.

The road between Tsarevo and Sinemorets is closed.

The National Institute of Meteorology and Hydrology reported that the precipitation was 283 litres per square metre in the area of the village of Kosty, and 236 litres per square metre in Gramatikovo. Code orange alert for heavy rains has been issued.

A crisis management staff is meeting on the spot to assess the situation. Arrangments have been made to attract additional resources from the structures of the Ministry of the Interior, including the Border Police and the Gendarmerie, from the Bourgas region and neighbouring districts.

The situation is complicated in the campsites "Nestinarka" and "Arapya", where the highest number of alerts have been received. In Tsarevo municipality sirens were activated to alert the population.

The situation in Varvara is also complicated. Mayor Bistra Dimova reported that there are flooded houses and even cars washed out to sea. They are currently trying to unclog the ravine and save the bridge, as well as to prevent the water from flooding the local church.

Varvara mayor said that there were flooded houses and caravans drifting into the sea

Traffic on the Tsarevo - Varvara road is temporarily restricted in both directions due to flooding.

In general, the ravines in the region have turned into full-flowing rivers. There are also reports of overflowing bridge at Sinemorets because there was a very strong surge of water there. The waters of the river Veleka have risen significantly.

Overflowing rivers have caused damage to infrastructure, including bridge structures. The main road between Tsarevo and Sinemorets is closed to traffic.

The Ministry of Interior said that the operational situation on the territory of Tsarevo municipality remains complicated. As a result of the heavy rainfall, a large number of signals have been received at the operational centre of the Burgas fire fighting service, mainly about requests for pumping water out from ground floors of houses and yards. 10 teams are working on site and additional forces and resources are being deployed.

In connection with the complicated situation, the ongoing intense rainfall and flooding in the Bourgas region, the Bulgarian Red Cross is monitoring the situation and is in constant communication with local authorities, the Ministry of Interior and the General Directorate of Fire Safety and Population Protection.

A team of the Regional Organisation of the Bulgarian Red Cross-Bourgas is travelling to the most affected settlements. The organisation is ready to assist the most affected with drinking water, snacks and blankets.

Prime Minister Acad. Nikolay Denkov will participate in the meeting of the crisis management headquarters in the municipality of Tsarevo in connection with the state of emergency due to heavy rainfall and strong winds in the region. At 19.00 today a briefing for the media will take place in the municipality building.