The rain has stopped and the sun is trying to break through the clouds, but thousands of Bulgarians – mostly tourists but also locals – are stuck in the villages south of the city of Tsarevo on the Black Sea coast, where the main road and a bypass collapsed during the day due to heavy flooding.

The area lies on Bulgaria’s southern coast that was flooded by the heaviest rain in decades on August 5, causing significant damage and taking four lives, while at least two people are still missing. All along the coast, cars and caravans were dragged into the sea, low-lying buildings were flooded and roads blocked. 

The village of Varvara has around 300 residents and small private campsites accommodating a few hundred visitors. Usually, the journey from there to nearby Tsarevo takes 10 minutes by car. However, on September 6, the day after the rainstorm flooded the area, those who were able to leave were on the road for as long as two hours.

In the opposite direction, the road between Varvara and the nearest bigger resort town of Ahtopol is not busy. However, it only gets travellers to Ahtopol and no further as floods have closed the road between Ahtopol and the rest of the southern coast.

In Varvara, the river and the raging sea have damaged buildings in the lower parts of the village and the small port used by local fishermen. Other than that, the village seems quiet, just very muddy. There are a few collapsed tents and whenever the rain gets heavier people quickly get covered in mud.

More worrying for those in Varvara and other coastal villages, the drinking water has been contaminated and the authorities are urging people not to use it for drinking or cooking.

The two local grocery stores have already run out of bottled water and basic foodstuffs. In Ahtopol, the biggest store has not even opened due to technical problems. Finding any groceries was still easier than getting bottled water though.

The crisis team set up on September 5 said on the day after that water bottling companies will provide 60,000 litres for free to people trapped south of Sozopol all the way to the village of Rezovo on Bulgaria’s border with Turkey. However, is not clear how the water will be delivered since the roads are yet to be cleared.

United on Unification Day

September 6 marks Bulgaria’s Unification Day and usually is marked by mass official events. However, some municipalities cancelled part of the ceremonies, while the Tsarevo municipality declared a day of mourning.

Instead, local residents, tourists and volunteers are trying to help those affected by the devastating flood. 

Hardest hit were some of the last organised campsites in Bulgaria where people live as a community and help each other out. While some people have been buying whatever groceries can be found, others are working together to clean the affected areas and search for missing people.

All along the coast, people have been sharing information on social media on whether they were able to access a route, where people need assistance and what goods they are bringing with them to help.

The national organisation of volunteers also reacted in the first hours of September 5, though said later that no more volunteers are currently needed as specialised works need to be carried out first to restore roads and access to the damaged areas.

Corruption allegations 

The devastating floods, which also affected parts of nearby Greece and Turkey, are seen as a consequence of climate change, which has resulted in more extreme weather events. The deluge in Bulgaria and neighbouring countries comes the month after Slovenia suffered its worst flooding in decades. 

At the same time, accusations that local authorities in Bulgaria have contributed to the devastating impact of the storm with corrupt practices strengthened. 

When the floods first struck, Emil Peychev, a member of Tsarevo’s municipal council from the Change Continues party, accused mayor Georgi Lapchev of Gerb of corrupt practices. Specifically Peychev said Lapchev had allowed gullies that would have allowed the water to flow away instead of flooding the area to be covered. This was allowed because of the claim they had been dry for years. Peychev said that the gullies were then declared as land plots and construction permits were issued for them.