Orbán: Peak flood expected to leave Hungary by mid-next week

The river’s Budapest embankments could be open to traffic around the middle of next week, he said.

The number of professionals working in flood prevention in Budapest was raised to 5,828, along with 4,012 volunteers. The number of registered volunteers is 15,353, Orbán said.

“Hungary has learned flood protection during the previous floods, and professionals and volunteers know exactly what to do,” Orbán said.

Stretch of areas under flood defence extended

The stretch of areas put under flood defence operations had to be extended, Orbán told the press conference.

The Danube is expected to recede slowly, he said, adding that no rain was in the forecast for the Austrian section of the river over the next seven days. The Danube is expected to peak on Thursday in the Dunaremete region, at Mosonmagyarovar, in north-western Hungary, he added.

The Lajta (Leitha) river is expected to peak at Mosonmagyarovar on Thursday morning at a record water level, Orbán said.

He said monitoring of the flood situation in Austria was continuous where the rivers were receding slowly. “It is important to keep an eye on slow receding because most flood damage occur during those periods,” he said.

The stretch of areas put under flood defence operations has been extended by 70 kilometres, the prime minister said.