The Danube, now dry, reveals mammoth bones
Water levels in Europe’s great river are at an all-time low: 186 tourists who became stranded have been forced to evacuate
Low water levels in the Danube have brought to light what are believed to be the remains of a mammoth near the village of Ryahovo in north-eastern Bulgaria, according to a report on the Bulgarian National Radio (BNR) website. Experts from the Ruse Ecomuseum and Aquarium will recover the bones for analysis. The discovery was reported by a local resident, who spotted large bones on the riverbed, which is visible in many places where the water level has fallen below two metres.
According to Professor Nikolay Nenov, director of the Regional History Museum in Ruse, as quoted by BNR, the find comprises a lower jaw, two tusks and possibly a rib. “Scientists who had carried out surveys of the site in previous years believed there might be some remains. ‘The area is now part of the Danube, but thousands of years ago it was probably a marsh,’ said Nenov. The Ruse Ecomuseum and Aquarium houses the remains of three mammoths that once inhabited the region.”
186 tourists evacuated from cruise ship
The low water levels along the river in Central Europe have also caused problems for tourists. In fact, the Bulgarian border police have completed the evacuation of all 186 passengers from the Swiss-flagged cruise ship Viking Ullur, after it ran aground on the Danube in Bulgaria yesterday due to low water levels in the river caused by the drought. This was reported by the Bulgarian news agency BTA.
The vessel ran aground at river kilometre 817, opposite Gomotartsi and about 25 km upstream from Vidin, not far from the Serbian border. On board were 186 passengers from EU countries and 52 crew members. The passengers were left without food or drinking water after the ship, which was due to refuel at Vidin, was unable to reach the port. The ship’s agent dispatched the French-flagged vessel Vivaldi to rescue them, but the latter was unable to get close enough, thus necessitating the intervention of the Bulgarian border police.
The transfer of passengers’ luggage is still under way on Tuesday. The fate of the 52 crew members remains uncertain, as the Viking Ullur could remain adrift for an extended period depending on sailing conditions and the prospects of refloating the vessel, the Border Police said. Initial reports indicated that the adrift cruise ship was located near Salcia, in south-western Romania. It had set sail from the Romanian town of Drobeta-Turnu Severin on Monday evening, bound for Vidin. Several attempts to refloat the vessel, carried out between Monday evening and yesterday morning, failed.
