Budapest returns to normal after devastating floods

(Patria) - Damage assessment is beginning in northern Hungary after floods, but on the southern side, the Danube's flow is still four times stronger than usual.

The peak of the water wave has not yet left Hungary. In Budapest, water levels have dropped and the city is rapidly returning to normal, reports HRT.

Twenty tons of mud and trees were removed from the road immediately after the water receded.

Budapest is regaining its true face, with all tram and subway lines operating again.

"Budapest defended itself well. At one point, the water threatened the parliament, but everything ended well," "Budapest was spared; it was terrible upstream on the Danube," "Hungary fared well because the water collected in the Carpathian Basin was regulated long ago according to professional standards," are some of the reactions from Budapest citizens.

Evacuated residents of the suburban settlement Dunafüred near Baja were less fortunate. They found themselves outside the protected area. They still cannot reach their homes on dry land.

Several weekend settlements in the Baja region were also deliberately flooded to reduce the pressure of the Danube on Baja and its Petőfi island.

- At the beginning, there were arguments with the city, the residents there did not agree, but they realized that above 900 centimeters, that dam is not enough - says Angela Šokac Marković from the Croatian National Self-Government in Baja.

However, the embankment in Mohács, which was further strengthened after the floods in 2013, is more than sufficient to defend the city even from the highest water levels of the Danube, which are still being recorded there today at the very exit from Hungary.

- There was also an old embankment, just much lower. Then people were always afraid of high water and built a large embankment - points out Đuro Jakšić from the Croatian National Self-Government in Mohács.

The Danube near Mohács and Baja will be monitored day and night until Sunday, when it is expected to return to its banks.