80-Year-Old Third Reich Ship Surfaces from the Danube River

As a result of a sharp drop in water levels in the Danube River in Serbia, the remains of a German warship from the Second World War have surfaced once again. This was reported by The Telegraph publication.

According to reports, the ship's wreckage was discovered near the village of Prahovo in Serbia and is considered one of the warships that belonged to the German Danube Flotilla. Towards the end of the Second World War, during the offensive of the Soviet army, this ship was intentionally scuttled by the troops of the Third Reich.

According to historical data, German troops sank the ship in September 1944 as part of the "Danube Elf" operation. During that period, a total of over 200 ships and barges were sunk, which caused navigation in this part of the Danube to come to a complete halt until the end of the war.

Expertsnote that the prolonged anomalous heat and severe drought in Europe have led to a record drop in water levels in the Danube River. Because of this, historical warships that were previously underwater have started to become visible again. By April, specialists had removed seven ships from the riverbed, and operations to lift the eighth ship are in the preparation stage.

Rescue operations are being carried out with extreme caution, as there is still a possibility that mines and unexploded ordnance remain on board the vessels. Therefore, before bringing them out of the water, thorough inspections are conducted by divers and sappers. Large ships are not removed from the water in one piece, but rather dismantled into sections.

To clear the Danube channel and ensure safe navigation, the European Union is also financially supporting the project. In particular, the European Commission has allocated 16.5 million euros in grants for these works, while the European Investment Bank has channeled an additional nearly 14 million euros . In the first phase, specialists plan to remove a total of 21 sunken ships from the water.

However, it is not possible to fully lift some ships that are large in size and heavily damaged. Therefore, some of them, after being made safe, may be re-buried in deeper parts of the riverbed.

According to estimates by Serbian authorities, the restriction of navigation due to the sunken ships in this area causes more than 5 million euros in damages to the country's economy every year.

At the same time, the record drop in water levels in the Danube River has also severely affected Hungary. It has been reported that due to the decrease in water volume in the river, the issue of temporarily suspending the operation of the country's only nuclear power plant is also being considered.