Budapest braces for flood of the decade

The heavy flooding that has been ravaging several of Hungary’s neighboring countries is expected to arrive in Hungary soon, and authorities have been working to fortify the defense lines in the threatened areas all weekend.

"The biggest flood of the decade is expected to arrive in the city in the second half of the week," Budapest Mayor Gergely Karácsony announced in a Facebook post on Monday morning. The authorities have said that water levels may reach up to 850 centimeters in the coming days.

The task force for flood protection met on Monday morning under the leadership of the Prime Minister. On leaving the meeting, Viktor Orbán summed up the situation in a reel recorded in his car. He said there were three areas especially at risk: Szigetköz, the Danube Bend and Budapest. "The scale of the danger is no greater than it was in 2013, so the task at hand is not something we haven't seen before," he said.

Gergely Karácsony shared the most important measures those living in the capital should be aware of:

• From 8 pm on Monday, the lower quays in Buda and Pest will be closed;
• Cars parked there must be moved by the afternoon at the latest, otherwise they will be towed;
• The Danube is expected to reach the lower quay on Tuesday morning;
• The Budapest Water and Sanitation Works are providing one million sandbags in cooperation with the disaster relief services and the subcontractors involved in the defence operations;
• 800,000 of these will be used on Margit Island;
• Starting on Tuesday, only vehicles involved in the emergency response will be allowed to enter the protected area of Margit Island, and pedestrian traffic will be restricted;
• Operations of the trams running along the quayside will be subject to restrictions, information on this will be provided by BKK Info;
• If the level of water reaches 8 metres, increased defense measures will also be necessary at Batthyány Square, but the Danube is expected to reach this level only on Thursday.
• Gergely Karácsony also pointed out that Margit Island and Római Part are particularly at risk from flooding, and said that road closures are also likely in these areas.

The mayor asked everyone to approach the Danube in the coming days with increased caution given the rapid rise in water levels and the river's strong current, and thanked all those involved in the emergency response for "their superhuman efforts and the people of Budapest for their understanding with regard to the possible disruptions caused by the flooding".