Danube Drought Exposes 20 WWII Wrecks and Mammoth Bones as Power Plants Near Shutdown
Updated
Updated · CBS New York · Aug 4
Danube Drought Exposes 20 WWII Wrecks and Mammoth Bones as Power Plants Near Shutdown
3 articles · Updated · CBS New York · Aug 4
Summary
At least 20 World War II German wrecks are now visible near Prahovo on the Serbia-Romania stretch of the Danube, while falling water in Bulgaria has also exposed well-preserved woolly mammoth bones.
Record-low river levels caused by drought and extreme heat are driving both discoveries, with experts linking the unusually hot weather to global warming and other factors.
The low water has also choked navigation on the Danube, with residents saying large ships can barely pass and authorities trying to keep traffic moving past explosive-laden hulks scuttled in 1944.
Beyond shipping, the shrinking river is pushing power plants toward shutdown and prompting governments across Central and Eastern Europe to conserve electricity.
The finds underscore how a climate-driven water crisis on a river that crosses 10 countries is exposing both wartime debris and far older remains.