The next 12 hours are critical for areas of the Soufli municipality, as four levees have broken in Kornofolia, Mandra, Amorio, and Fylachto, causing serious concern. Residents and authorities are fighting to prevent flooding in Lavara, Soufli.

In Lavara, where waters have reached the village, authorities have reinforced certain sections of the riverbank to “seal off” the settlement and prevent flooding, while in some areas water levels have reached up to six meters.

A village resident told protothema.gr: “We’re taking the local waters from the village to prevent flooding and pouring them into the river. The plains have flooded and water reached the village. Last night we built this levee. Afterwards, we received an evacuation message for some houses in the village. The river level keeps rising.”

Since Tuesday night, residents have been on constant alert as the Evros River continues to rise, monitoring water levels that have flooded the junction connecting the village to the national highway.

Meanwhile, pumps are running nonstop to remove water, and the northern junction of Lavara has remained closed since Tuesday afternoon, as large volumes of water from the plains have flowed toward the settlement.

112 alert and 2.5-meter rise in three hours

At 02:30 a.m., a 112 warning message was sent to Lavara residents, urging heightened readiness. According to eyewitness accounts, in just three hours—from 22:00 to 01:00—water levels rose about 2.5 meters, triggering sirens in Kato Chorio and mobilizing authorities, who went door-to-door informing residents.

Relief in Bulgaria and Turkey
At the Pythio measuring station, the water level dropped to 6.50 meters from 6.82 the previous day, indicating gradual easing. This improvement is attributed to levee breaks in Bulgaria and in the Edirne region of Turkey, where part of the waters is being released.

However, massive volumes of water continue to flow along the Evros River, leaving plains, fields, and farmland in Soufli, Tycheró, and Petalo exposed to risk.

Over 1,600 cubic meters of water per second flow into the Evros

The Evros receives 1,600 m³ of water per second, primarily from Bulgaria and the Ivaylovgrad dam, reaching the river via its tributary, the Arda. Additional water flows in from the east via the Tundzha River and from the south via the Eridropotamos (around Didymoteicho), while the Erginis contributes a smaller volume. The water volume entering the Evros is enormous, though significantly lower than during the major floods of winter 2014–15, when, according to then-deputy regional governor Dimitris Petrovits, flows from Bulgaria reached 3,000 m³ per second and flooded over 400,000 acres.

In Mandra village, as shown in photos and videos shared by protothema.gr, water has reached the first houses and entered the basements of two homes.

Authorities have deployed a large water pump to protect Mandra, directing the main volume of water past a levee that literally saves the village.

Thodoris Tziamparis, president of Mandra, told protothema.gr: “The levee has saved the village, and the pumped water is being discharged beyond it. We have waters coming from Evros overflow as well as from Lavara, so water levels are high. You can see it from the bridge; the water has reached just below the road surface.”

“Water rises 5 centimeters per hour”

According to George Mathioudakis, president of TOEB Soufli, five large pumps are deployed for water removal, but the situation remains extremely difficult.

“Every hour the water level rises about 5 centimeters,” Mathioudakis said, adding that the plains are receiving 3,500 cubic meters of water per 24 hours.

He also noted that the phenomenon is intense and has occurred in the past. “In 2015 something similar happened, and then—as now—we feared a levee would break at the same spot in Trano Rema, just before Mandra village, specifically at the southern junction of Soufli,” he said.

It is recalled that from Tuesday, February 24, to Friday, February 27, the General Secretariat for Civil Protection has placed the Evros regional unit under red code alert.