Podcast in English
Text size
Bulgarian National Radio © 2025 All Rights Reserved

4 districts of Bulgaria affected by rainfall and overflowing rivers

2
Photo: BGNES

The municipalities of Garmen, Simitli, Petrich and Blagoevgrad have declared a state of emergency due to torrential rains. There are no injured or distressed people, but the damage is huge. The mayor of Garmen has requested urgent state aid because the incoming Mesta River has damaged a main water supply system. In some places the overflowing waters of the river have demolished dikes and flooded roads and bridges in Gotse Delchev. The overflowing Kanina River has destroyed bridges, damaged substations and flooded hotels and houses in the resort village of Ognyanovo.

In Petrich, 24 liters of rain per square meter fell in 24 hours. The Struma River overflowed its banks and flooded thousands of decares of agricultural land. The most critical was in the area of ​​the village of Krushitsa, where the high waters were dangerously close to the transit gas pipeline to Greece.

The situation in some municipalities in the districts of Smolyan, Kardzhali and Plovdiv remains dire. A partial state of emergency has been declared in the municipality of Ardino. There, torrential rains and hurricane-force winds have triggered numerous landslides. A bridge over the Arda River near the village of Kitnitsa was taken away. The roads to 6 settlements are interrupted. The elevated level of the river has caused significant damage to the infrastructure near the tourist attraction "Devil's Bridge". The road Smolyan - Devin is closed due to collapses. The bypass route is through Krichim.



Последвайте ни и в Google News Showcase, за да научите най-важното от деня!
Listen to the daily news from Bulgaria presented in "Bulgaria Today" podcast, available in Spotify.

Gallery

More from category

Band of rain to sweep across Bulgaria from west to east

On Friday, morning temperatures will range from 10 to 15°C, with 10°C in Sofia. Rain is expected in the western regions in the early hours. During the day, skies will remain cloudy as rain moves from west to east, gradually easing in the afternoon with..

published on 10/23/25 7:05 PM
Rumen Radev

Bulgaria and Vietnam should capitalise on their strategic geographic positions, says president Radev

Bulgaria and Vietnam should make the most of their strategic geographic positions – Vietnam in Southeast Asia and Bulgaria in Southeast Europe – acting as a gateway for goods and services from Asia to Europe , President Rumen Radev said on Thursday. He..

published on 10/23/25 4:03 PM

INSAIT model gives robots unprecedented 3D spatial intelligence

The Institute for Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence and Technology (INSAIT) at Sofia University ‘St. Kliment Ohridski’ has released SPEAR-1, an open-source AI model that gives industrial robots 3D spatial intelligence . The technology is..

published on 10/23/25 3:57 PM