Danube record lows strand boats across Europe

Record-low water levels on the Danube are disrupting shipping, fishing, power generation and tourism across parts of central and eastern Europe after successive heatwaves dried out the region.

The river is at a 30-year low in Romania and Slovakia and at its lowest level since measurements began in Hungary. In the Romanian town of Corabia, sandbars have left pleasure boats stranded in algae and vessels unable to enter or leave the tourist port.

Ships in Slovakia, Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria are unable to travel fully loaded and face long waits. Ferry services between Romania and Bulgaria have been temporarily suspended in two areas, and a cruise ship with almost 200 passengers had to be evacuated in Bulgaria after it ran aground on the Danube.

Hungary shut down its only nuclear power plant on Sunday because it relies on Danube water for cooling. Romania also shut down the two reactors at the Cernavoda plant, the first time both had been stopped at the same time because of low water levels. Serbia has reduced generation at its two biggest hydroelectric plants.

In Romania, parts of the Danube are already one metre below the minimum navigable level. Adrian Maizel, from the administration monitoring traffic on the river, said crews were dredging to keep a narrower channel open where possible.

A spokesperson for Bulgaria's Danube agency said cargo vessels were being forced to wait or sail with reduced loads. Bulgarian fishermen near the Vidin-Calafat bridge said low water had trapped their boats onshore.

Dozens of Hungarian cities and villages along the river introduced water restrictions during a June heatwave, and several cruises had been suspended by July. At Slovakia's Gabcikovo dam, lock operations have slowed, increasing waiting times.

The World Weather Attribution group of scientists said in a report last week that the current drought was made more severe by human-caused climate change. With the heat expected to continue, the source material reported no immediate relief in sight.