Floods in Bosnia and Serbia

This item appears on page 14 of the July 2014 issue.

In May, the worst floods to strike Bosnia & Herzegovina and Serbia since rainfall measurements were first kept 120 years ago have left at least 35 people dead and caused the evacuations of hundreds of thousands. The death toll was expected to rise as waters receded. 

More than 2,000 landslides were reported in Bosnia, some in areas containing unexploded land mines left over from the Bosnian War. These areas had been mapped and well marked, but floodwaters have swept away signage and may have shifted mines. It is believed there are more than 120,000 live mines in Bosnia & Herzegovina.