Head of the European Union Delegation to Serbia Michael Davenport and Director of Government Office for Reconstruction and Flood Relief Marko Blagojevic, visited the construction works in Paracin, carried out on houses of families whose homes were destroyed in May 2014 floods. Through EU Assistance for Flood Relief in Serbia Programme, the EU have allocated some 1.057.000 euros for the reconstruction and construction of a total of 57 damaged houses, reconstruction of two high schools and support to 660 agricultural producers.
Ambassador Davenport visited the vulnerable families Pavlovic, Milenkovic and Ilic, whose houses were completely destroyed in floods. Thanks to EU donation, these families will in December obtain new homes, furnished and equipped with appliances.
A total of 14 houses will be built and 43 homes reconstructed in Paracin, and, depending on weather conditions, the completion is expected in December 2014 or January 2015.
“Private homes in this part of Paracin have suffered some serious damages during May floods, and European Union invest efforts and money in order to move these families in to their homes as soon as possible. We already note concrete results and roofs on the houses, and I believe these families would move in to their homes by the end of 2014,” Davenport said.
Director of Government Office for Reconstruction and Flood Relief Marko Blagojevic said that the EU assistance worth 30 million euros was “only a fifth of the total EU assistance, making EU the biggest donor”.
“After several months of waiting, we can finally see the smiling faces of people who lost all of their assets to floods,” Blagojevic said.
Mayor of Paracin Sasa Paunovic said that citizens were “pleased with the pace the EU assistance is progressing, including reconstruction and construction of houses, rehabilitation of public buildings and support to agricultural producers.”
“We hope that in the moths to come we would also receive funding for projects of river regulation so as to prevent future flooding,” Punovic said.
School of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering in Paracin has been reconstructed thanks to 37.000 euros allocated by the EU, and included plastering, flooring, replacement of joinery, new furniture, as well as recovery of heating system.
“Most of the assistance was aimed at recovery of boiler room and heating substation, the one heating School of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering and three neighbouring schools, with more than 2.000 students. This way, students and teachers will be able to work in warm classrooms during the winter. Reconstruction of Technological School is underway as well, an intervention worth 100.000 euros, where classrooms and cabinets of the lower level were significantly damaged,” Davenport said.
Ambassador Davenport also visited the family of agricultural producer Milorad Nikolic, who received the EU donation of 300 sour cherry seedlings, in order to restart his agricultural production destroyed in floods.
“Some 660 agricultural households in Paracin have received wheat seeds, fertilisers, plum and sour cherry seedlings, whereas the delivery of raspberry and blackberry seedlings is underway. In the coming months, they will be delivered seeds and fertilisers for spring sowing, animal food, agricultural equipment, greenhouses and livestock in order to recover their estates,” Davenport said.
