Heavy, wet snow leaves 20 villages in Southern Bulgaria without electricity

More than 20 villages in the Southern Bulgarian district of Smolyan on April 6 remain without electricity as heavy wet snow caused disruptions in power lines and power poles in the area.

The wet snow in the region has brought down a main electricity power line.

The situation is most difficult in the municipality of Rudozem, where a state of emergency was declared last night. 8 villages in the municipality have remained without electricity for more than 30 hours. 7 villages in Madan municipality, 5 in Devin municipality, 3 in Smolyan municipality have also suffered power outages caused by the heavy snow.

Road conditions are getting back to normal. Vehicles are required to use tyre chains for movement through Prevala mountain pass and Pamporovo.Traffic is temporarily banned for vehicles weighing more than 12 tonnes.