Romanian floods death toll rises to 14

BUCHAREST (Reuters) - The death toll from extensive floods across Romania over the past four days has risen to 14, with more than 1,200 people evacuated from their collapsing houses, the Interior Ministry said on Saturday.

A 25-year-old man and two shepherds from northern Romania were killed by lightning and two other men drowned in a swollen river in central Romania in the last 24 hours.

Lightning killed four and three other people have drowned in southern Romania in the past four days. A 9-year-old girl drowned in the northern region of Botosani and an elderly villager was crushed under a collapsing electricity pole.

Interior Minister Vasile Blaga said floods destroyed 200 houses and damaged some 5,500 others. As many as 33,000 hectares (81,540 acres) of farmland were flooded and 88 villages remained without electricity.

The government has yet to estimate losses.
Torrential rains have swept across the Balkans for most of the summer, killing dozens of people in Bulgaria and its neighbor Romania and causing hundreds of millions of euros in damage to roads, bridges, railways and crops.

About 30 people lost their lives in the worst floods in 50 years, which hit Romania in April, May and in July.

Meteorologists said more rain was expected next week.

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