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Following the recent floods in Moravia, the crisis response team has observed more than 15 cases of subsidence in the south Moravian Zlín region. In the town of Lidečko, a drinking-water pipeline that supplies tens of thousands of households in the area could be put out of service due to subsidence. The governor of the region said on Wednesday that several towns will remain in a state of emergency until the end of the month. In 1997, floods devastated the Moravian town of Troubky. Damages caused by this year’s floods are estimated to reach a billion-crown figure.

Fire brigades were called out more than 30 times in south Moravia on Monday night after the region was hit by a violent storm. Cellars were flooded and trees were knocked down, with fire officers having the most work to do in Brno. Water levels on the River Morava have risen and a flood warning has been issued at Lanžhot. Forecasters say the Czech Republic can expect more storms in the next day or two. Last week hundreds of people were evacuated in Moravia after strong rains caused flooding in some places. There was one death, when a woman drowned in her garden after a river burst its banks.

Czech charities have reportedly collected around 11 million crowns in public donations towards helping people in Moravia and Silesia whose property was damaged or destroyed by floods last week. In addition to donations by text message or direct contributions, organisations are hoping to raise still more funds. The Czech Red Cross in conjunction with Prague City Hall, for example, will hold a special benefit concert in the Czech capital on Wednesday.

Hundreds of soldiers are continuing clean-up operations in the town of Karviná, one of many municipalities in Moravia and Silesia hit by floods last week. Some 400 homes in Karviná were hit, and at least one faces demolition. Many homes suffered flooded cellars and other damage requiring stress assessment. Soldiers are clearing the banks of nearby rivers including the Olše, digging ditches to drain away remaining water. The Karviná area, along with Ostrava and Frýdek-Mýstek were the hardest-hit during last week’s floods, which claimed one life: a 69-year-old woman drowned after the Olše River burst its banks.

Prime Minister Fischer told Czech Television on Sunday that he intends to ask the Chamber of Deputies to rush through a proposal for the issue of 3 billion crowns in flood bonds before elections next weekend. The proposal would be dealt with as emergency legislation at a special session of Parliament on Thursday, the day before elections. The PM said that the bonds would unavoidably push the state budget deficit beyond the approved level of 163 billion crowns. Parliament already has one special session scheduled for the coming week dealing with a proposal for direct election of the president.

In other flood-related news, the main bridge in the eastern town of Kunčičky u Bašky, near Frýdek-Místek, partly collapsed on Sunday. The main support pillar slipped by 15° due to flood disruption of its gravel foundation, causing a visible slant in the roadway; authorities believe the bridge will likely have to be torn down entirely and rebuilt. The bridge was closed to vehicles and pedestrians on Sunday morning, dividing two communities of 3,500 people and causing long detours via Frýdek-Místek.

Parts of the region of Pardubice, in eastern Bohemia, were struck by local floods at the weekend as torrential rain in the area washed out roads and inundated cellars. Firemen were called out primarily in the areas of Ústí nad orlici, Svitavy and Chrudim to clear mud from motorways and pump water out of the basements of homes and industrial buildings. Problems with mud also occupied firemen in the region of Hradec Králové.

The Ministry of Finance has provided 55 million crowns for disaster relief in the three regions most affected by recent flooding in Moravia. 20 million will go to the regions of Moravia-Silesia and Zlín while another 15 million has been earmarked for the region of Olomouc. Officials said they expect the regions themselves to match the first round of financial aid provided by the federal government. Meanwhile, the Forum of Donors says that private donors have so far given more than seven million crowns in aid to humanitarian organisations for disaster relief. The Ministry of Agriculture has so far estimated that the floods have caused a billion crowns in damages to waterways and agriculture alone, with an additional 550 million in damages to road and rail infrastructure in the regions.

In other flood-related news, the Ministry of the Environment has announced that it will make 3.45 billion crowns available for anti-flood measures through the Environmental Operation Programme. The money, which communities must apply for by June 30, may be used for landslide prevention and monitoring programmes. The State Environmental Fund will also be providing loans for the repair of sewage and water treatment systems. 100 million crowns are currently available for such repairs.

While river levels in Moravia continue to stabilise, meteorologists are forecasting heavy storms and hail for parts of the area. Rivers could rise in certain locations to the third-level emergency status. According to the Czech Hydrometeorological Institute, the precipitation should not cause further flooding elsewhere than in cellars or lower-lying buildings. A storm during the night on Friday saw increased water levels in the regions of Šumperk and Jeseník, with the Branná river reaching the third-level. Roughly 30 landslides have occurred in other parts of Moravia as the water levels recede. Prime Minister Jan Fischer visited North Moravia on Saturday to inspect the damage.