From Maglaj, 4,000 cubic metres of waste are removed daily, an amount they used to have in four months

Around 25 trucks and 20 heavy construction machines remove nearly 4,000 cubic metres of waste left after the floods from Maglaj every day. Mehmed Mustabašić, the municipality mayor, said for the Bosnian news agency Patria that before the floods, the residents of Maglaj barely had that much waste in four months.

- We are making enormous efforts, hundreds of people are engaged in cleaning the city. We are spending huge amounts of fuel. We have also opened temporary landfills – said Mustabašić.

- In the first days, there were up to 50 trucks during the day, they could barely pass each other on the streets. Now there are somewhat fewer, but people are still doing a great job every day. The machines are running from morning to evening, citizens are helping, volunteers are coming.

Aid arrives in Maglaj daily from all sides, but now in this town, besides food, fuel is also needed for construction machines and trucks, so that there is no stoppage in waste removal. Businesspeople from Maglaj and other
municipalities have provided their vehicle fleets for unblocking the city, but they need to be ensured at least part of the financial resources so they can function smoothly until the end.

- Life is slowly returning here, but we are still far from a safe situation. If you take a walk through the city in the evening, you will see that there is no one on the streets. People work hard during the day, clean, and then can hardly wait for darkness to fall and to go to bed – says Mustabašić. In recent days, several shops have opened in Maglaj, everyone is making great efforts for the economy to start functioning as well, but that will take more time. Even the smallest help to this
city that comes from outside gives citizens hope.