70,000 decares of land in Bulgaria affected by hailstorms

The hailstorms affected about 70,000 decares of land, Minister of Agriculture, Food and Forestry Desislava Taneva said on May 21. Currently, state aid was allocated to compensate for completely damaged areas, she added.

Taneva, Interior Minister Mladen Marinov and the Director of the General Directorate "Fire Safety and Protection of the Population" Chief Commissioner Nikolay Nikolov are in Svishtov to become familiar with the damages caused by the intensive rainfall in the region.

The Minister of Agriculture, Food and Forests said the region was affected by hailstorms and then rain. The teams of the regional directorates of agriculture and are currently on site to survey the areas. The only thing I can tell the farmers right now is that after the water subsides, the area will be surveyed. State aid is in place to compensate for fully damaged areas and compensation is better when there is insurance for these areas, she explained.

On Monday, the torrential rain flooded and caused huge damages in four villages in the region of Svishtov. The Svishtov - Levski railway line was temporarily closed. Dozens of agricultural land and houses in the villages of Morava, Ovcha Mogila, Vardim and Delyanovtsi are flooded. In many places in the area the downpours also damaged road surfaces.