Konjic rafters saved over 160 people from flooded Maglaj

He explained to the mother that he could only take the child, and that he would come back for her and her husband later. And in fact, he himself was not sure if he would find her there again. That grimace on her face, he says today, he will never forget.

Samir Krivić is one of 14 Konjic rafters who, along with two friends who joined them in Maglaj, saved more than 160 people on May 15 and 16, whom the flooded Bosna river had trapped in their homes. They were without food and water. There were elderly and frail people there, but also newborn babies, pregnant women, and seriously ill patients.

Krivić, who initiated the action of the Konjic rafters going into the dangerous zone of Maglaj, speaks about those moments a few days after everything for the BiH news agency Patria. He is not very open. He speaks with hesitation. He wants to erase those images from his life as soon as possible. He returned to his native Konjic where he continued to do what he knows best - taking tourists down the Neretva waterfalls and enjoying the Herzegovinian karst with them.

- I received a call from a man from Maglaj. He was begging for help on the other end of the line. He told me that his wife and children were trapped in the house, and that due to the rising water, he could not reach them. Even today, I don't know how he got my number and why he called me specifically - Krivić tells the Patria agency.

He says he did not hesitate. He shared the decision to go to Maglaj with his friends on his Facebook profile. Within just a few minutes, 13 of them said they were going with him.

- The journey from Konjic to Maglaj took two days. It seemed like the longest and hardest journey of my life. We left on Wednesday morning and only arrived on Thursday. We were supposed to be transferred by helicopters from Konjic, but the plan changed because the weather conditions did not allow helicopters to take off. On the first day, only four members of our team managed to break through to Maglaj, exclusively thanks to BiH pilots who, on their own responsibility, took off one helicopter even though the weather was very bad. Our guys worked late into the night on the first day and saved a large number of people. They evacuated people from Natronka.

When he arrived in Maglaj, he says, the city was in a desperate state.

- There was no organization, communication lines were broken, panic reigned - Krivić recalls. He says that the Bosna river was more dangerous than ever before. It carried containers, fences, trees...

- In such conditions, it was more than insane to be on the water. But we had no other choice. No one could reach the people trapped in their homes except us. The Civil Protection neither had the equipment for such conditions, nor were they trained for something like that. I gathered my men and told them to take care of themselves first, then everything else. I told the guys that besides the four rafters, we would only take four more people in the boat, but the adrenaline was so high that at one point we started breaking the rules. We put seven people in. It was risky, but we couldn't leave people, we took the risk - says Krivić. He adds that their friends from Maglaj, and one firefighter, helped the Konjic rafters a lot, showing them the terrain and the places where people were trapped.

Rafters from Konjic, and later teams from Visoko, Zavidovići, and other cities played a crucial role in saving Maglaj during the catastrophic floods. But today, these brave guys are rarely talked about.

- That place was too dangerous for anyone to come for publicity. We did it from the heart. That's why we don't expect anything from it. It is enough for us that, thanks to us, many families are together today, says Krivić.