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Troops Called Out As Floods Swirl Across Central Europe
The armies of several central and eastern European countries were mobilizing to cope with heavy rains and floods which have killed nearly 70 people in the region this summer, with Romania and Bulgaria the worst hit. In Bulgaria, the army was called out both near the capital Sofia and in the country's east, two regions where at least 24 people have been killed and 14,000 left homeless in flooding since June. The troops are clearing river beds, building dikes and rebuilding bridges, houses and roads, Defence Minister Vesselin Bliznakov told bTV television on Monday. "The army has cancelled a (military) exercise in order to help out in the devastated regions," Bliznakov said. The flooding has also destroyed farmland in Bulgaria, sending the prices of vegetables soaring to double their normal rate. The UN's World Health Organisation estimated last week that one in four Bulgarians have been directly affected by the flooding. In neighbouring Romania, the worst affected country in the region, the toll from atrocious weather over the past week rose on Monday to 18, with one missing. Storms since Tuesday have hit nearly 500 towns and villages in the north and centre, destroying some 200 homes and damaging more than 4,000 others, as well as about 700 bridges. More than 1,400 residents have been evacuated from flooded areas while hundreds of police and soldiers were deployed to help victims. In July, Romania experienced its worst flooding in 30 years, leaving 24 people dead and causing damage estimated at 650 million euros (780 million dollars). On Monday, the water began to recede as there has been no rain since Sunday, but more was expected Tuesday, the environment ministry warned in a new alert. Further to the west in Slovenia, civil defence and firefighter units on Monday built embankments along the Mura river, in the country's northeast, to prevent further flooding after the heaviest rains in 50 years, Slovenian state radio reported. The floods washed out roads in several towns in central and eastern Slovenia, the radio reported, adding that total damage has exceeded one billion tolars (4 million euros, 4.9 million dollars). The water level of the Mura exceeded its average level 4.6 metres (15 feet one inch), local authorities said. In the southern Austrian province of Styria, two people -- a 50-year old woman and her 77-year-old stepmother -- were killed over the weekend after their house was washed away by a mudslide triggered by the rains in the village of Gasen. In the southern Austrian province of Carinthia, some 100 litres of precipitation per square metre fell from Saturday to Monday, the most intense rains since 1948 there, meteorologists said. In western Hungary, a freight train derailed on Monday after the rains washed away the tracks, but no injuries were reported. Floods were reported to be worst in the country's west. Despite the damage, these are not the worst floods to hit central and eastern Europe in recent years. In 2002, the flooding of the Elbe and Danube rivers and their tributaries killed hundreds and prompted the evacuations of tens of thousands in Germany, the Czech Republic, Austria, Hungary, Croatia and Slovakia. All rights reserved. � 2005 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse. Related Links SpaceDaily Search SpaceDaily Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express 
MSG-2 Now Planned For Launch Towards Year's End
Kourou, French Guiana (ESA) Aug 17, 2005A new slot has been identified for the second Meteosat Second Generation (MSG) satellite which is now due to be launched towards the end of 2005.
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