WORLD
EU chief bares $11B for nations hit by floods
‘These are extraordinary times, and extraordinary times need extraordinary measures.’
WROCLAW, Poland (AFP) — European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Thursday announced 10 billion euros ($11 billion) in funds for member nations reeling from “heartbreaking” devastation after floods caused by Storm “Boris.”
The death toll from the storm that struck central and eastern Europe last week rose to 24 as of Wednesday and some areas are still under threat from rising waters.
Von der Leyen spoke in the Polish city of Wroclaw alongside the leaders of four countries from the flood-hit region.
“It was for me on the one hand heartbreaking to see the destruction and the devastation through the floods,” she told reporters.
Von der Leyen said the European Union had two sources — cohesion funds and the solidarity fund — that it could use to “help with funding to repair and reconstruct” the damage.
Cohesion funds usually require co-financing from the member states but in this case von der Leyen said it would be “100 percent European money, no co-financing.”
“These are extraordinary times, and extraordinary times need extraordinary measures.”
Strong wind and heavy rains struck the region last week, killing five people in Austria, seven in Poland, seven in Romania and five in the Czech Republic.