Due to a prolonged drought record low water levels have been registered at three Hungarian stretches of the Danube, Europe’s second longest river.
The drought that has hit water transport and passenger shipping companies weeks ago is now visible to the naked eye: on the Budapest stretch of the Danube, the southern tip of Margaret Island (pictured above) now peeks out from under the water – a rare sight.
News portal Origo.hu wrote that in Ercsi, some 35 km south of Budapest, the level of the Danube was 31 cm (12.2 inches) below the previous low registered in 1970. In Budapest the Danube level was 61 cm, still somewhat above the 51 cm registered in 2003.
Water freight on the Danube already came to a standstill two weeks ago, when water levels only allowed barges to be loaded to one-third of capacity, forcing freight companies to divert their loads to road transport. River cruise ships normally an obvious presence in Budapest during the peak tourist season are also absent.
But to Budapest residents the most telling sign is that the “Hunger rock” has also peaked out from under the water.
The Hunger Rock in Budapest, just north of Szabadság Híd (Liberty Bridge)
The rock’s name is self-explanatory: it is only visible during severe droughts when the level of the Danube falls below 95 cm.
