Hello and welcome to the press conference
in the wake of the extraordinary 61th meeting of the government
devoted to the flooding in Slovenia. I invite Civil Defense Commander
Srečko Seštan and the Acting Director of the Administration
Civil Protection and Disaster Relief Leon Behin to take the floor
and share the latest information. Environment Minister Uroš Brežan
will introduce the legislative changes approved by the government.
European Commissioner Janez Lenarčič will talk about
Slovenia's chances of obtaining EU funds for flood damage.
Unfortunately, police have confirmed that the floods
claimed the fourth fatality today, an older male
who lived by the Sava river. People are still being warned
to obey road closures and instructions from first responders,
to stay home and away from affected areas.
Take care of your safety. Property comes second.
If you need first aid, dial 112 or 113.
I now invite the representative of Civil Defense to speak.
Hel...
Hello. I would like to emphasize two things.
First, the government and the relevant ministries
considered the proposal that we allow stores to open
on Sundays and holidays, primarily to facilitate
urgent repairs, so people will be able
to purchase various products there. We determined
that we could only do that with an order from the Commander
for the duration of the emergency.
In less than an hour, this order will be given
and will allow stores selling groceries, technology,
or children's goods to remain open regardless
of provisions in the Trade Act, including on Saturdays and holidays.
Second, the government has decided
that all communication from the ministries
and anyone else who wants to help in this emergency,
is carried out via the following email address:
podpora@urszr.si
We'll also set up a new domain that will be easier to use.
I believe address will be: poplave@gov.si
We'll notify the public and the ministries
about these addresses. We would like our campaigns
as well as help from NGOs and individuals
to be conducted through a single support channel,
through which all of these offers of assistance
will be evaluated. When we find ourselves
in a situation to take advantage of them,
we'll do just that. -You'll be able to find
everything on gov.si.
Joining us with the latest about the situation
in Črna na Koroškem, a town the Armed Forces were able to reach
during the meeting, is Mr. Behin.
Hello. The hardest to reach areas in Slovenia
are in the Upper Savinja Valley and Carinthia.
Whereas we have been able to reach the Upper Savinja Valley
and establish communication with Solčava,
in part with our own IT equipment,
access to the Carinthian municipalities remains limited,
notably the municipality of Črna,
where all three road links, including the main artery
to Austria, are impassable.
However, our first units were able,
with the support of the Armed Forces, to make their way
to the town itself and to set up a ground link,
and we're now establishing communication channels
solely for emergency units and supply lines.
This is difficult terrain and is accessible only
with special vehicles, but they can be reinforced.
With the support of airborne military and police units,
we also delivered the first supplies
of food and water to Črna na Koroškem.
At the same time, much-needed fuel supplies
were also sent to the town.
It will be used for generators, repeater stations,
and some private purposes, enabling communication links
and the functioning of systems necessary
to ensure somewhat normal living conditions.
All of this indicates
that while conditions will remain difficult in Črna,
they are improving, at least in terms of access
and necessities such as food, fuel, and water.
At the moment, helicopters are being readied
for the evacuation of some people in the area of Črna.
This is now possible because we have a better view of the situation.
Some buildings are no longer habitable,
so we need to evacuate those people and move them
outside the municipality to more suitable areas.
We don't have any reports about injuries
or anything similar.
This is only about ensuring safe habitation
and future activities.
We're also seeing problems with access to Prevalje
and other municipalities,
but the situation there is improving by the hour.
Access to food is always a problem,
and we're currently collecting them
to improve the situation in stores and normalize
the supply chain in the affected areas.
Finally, there's the Savinja Valley.
We're seeing a moderate decline of the water level there.
Our crews are inspecting bridges and communication lines.
Some new connections have been set up,
and at least the central part of the Savinja Valley
is now normally accessible,
but access to the northern part is very difficult
or impossible, but with the establishment
of communication lines that have been and will be set up,
we'll make it easier for loved ones and residents to get in touch.
Thank you. Do we have any questions?
Kaja Kobetič of POP TV has a question via Zoom. Go ahead.
Hello. First, a question for Mr. Šestan about store openings.
You mentioned Saturdays and holidays.
Does this include extended opening hours during the week?
Also, I don't know who will be able to answer this better,
but you said that the floods claimed another fatality,
that a man was found on the banks of the Sava.
Do you have more information about this?
The extension of opening hours will be allowed.
This order does not determine opening hours,
so that is up to individual stores.
As for the fatality, our coordinator has already mentioned
that it was confirmed and that it happened on the banks of the Sava.
An older resident was found dead.
As the Interior Minister has confirmed,
that the fatality was an older man who lived by the Sava.
This is the fourth tragic fatality of these floods.
Any other questions?
If not, I thank both our speakers.
I wish you a successful day.
Joining us now is European Commissioner Lenarčič,
who attended today's meeting
and spoke about Slovenia's chances
of obtaining EU funds.
Hello. Please let us know what you told the government.
Hello. First, I would like to express my condolences
to the loved ones of those lost in this weather disaster
and my solidarity to everyone affected by the flooding.
I would also like to thank all the first responders
whose work saved many lives, protected considerable property,
and deserve our gratitude.
This is not just me being polite.
It's a fact that similar natural disasters in other countries
resulted in many fatalities.
So far, this has not been the case in Slovenia,
and this shows how effective
Slovenia's system of civil defense and rescue has been.
At the government meeting, we discussed various options
for EU assistance.
I'd like to emphasize that Slovenia is not alone
at this difficult time.
Slovenia can count on EU assistance from member states
in various forms. The first form, which comes under my jurisdiction,
is through the European Civil Protection Pool.
Slovenia can use this mechanism to ask for specific aid,
and we can then organize the aid on behalf of the member states.
For now, Slovenia has asked for satellite maps
that will help it determine the extent of damage
and better direct recovery funds.
We also discussed other sources of EU aid.
This is primarily about the EU's Solidarity Fund,
which is intended for countries affected by natural disasters.
I explained the procedure for obtaining aid from this source.
As I understand it, Slovenia will ask for assistance
from the EU Solidarity Fund.
We also discussed other potential sources.
One of those potential sources
is the European Crisis Reserve for Farmers.
This could provide funding to cover crop losses
or damage to farm equipment.
Significant funding has also been set aside
in existing programs,
which provide Slovenia with support for the EU budget.
These are primarily cohesion funds,
funds from the Regional Development Fund,
as well as from the European Recovery and Resilience Facility.
Significant funds are available there,
and in light of this weather disaster
and flooding, these funds can be redirected
to address the consequences of the disaster.
I'd like to conclude with the following thought.
I believe that these horrible floods provide an opportunity
for a long-term perspective and for us to invest more
in improving our readiness for, and resilience to, such disasters.
Over the past two years, Slovenia experiences catastrophic fires
and now devastating flooding. This calls for Slovenia
to consider more investment in improving
our readiness and resilience to phenomena
that we'll continue to experience. -Apparently, this was a success
in Celje, where flood protection was built from EU funds,
and there was no flood.
We have a question. Špela Novak, Radio Slovenia.
Hello. Can you tell us more about the European Civil Protection Pool?
What additional funds can you offer and when?
As for the other sources of aid,
how much funding we're talking about and what is the time frame?
The European Civil Protection Pool is activated upon specific requests
for aid from the affected countries.
The affected country asks for specific aid,
be it high-capacity water pumps, which is what Italy asked for
during the May floods in Emilia-Romagna.
Slovenia also contributed to that aid
via the Civil Protection Pool, which is available
almost immediately. It takes a few hours or a day.
If and when a country asks for aid, we try to organize
and send that aid as soon as possible.
As for the other sources, such as the Solidarity Fund,
we need to have an estimate of the damage.
Based on that estimate, we can determine
if the damage reached the threshold set by the rules
that govern that fund. That threshold is 0.6%
of the GNP of the affected member state.
If this threshold is reached, an aid proposal can be drafted
using our methodology.
In the legislative process, that proposal is then taken up
by the European Council and the European Parliament.
Gašper Petovar, RTV Slovenia.
You answered a part of this, but based on what
you heard from the ministers, Mr. Šestan, and the Prime Minister,
could you provide an estimate
of how much funding Slovenia may end up receiving from the EU?
It's too early for me to answer that.
As I mentioned, the first condition
is for a damage estimate to be completed, and based on that,
we'll get a proposal for aid from the Solidarity Fund.
There are some rules about the maximum amount
that can come from the fund. It's not 100%.
That's why there are several opportunities to deal
with the consequences of the flooding
in the existing programs and funds from which Slovenia
is already receiving substantial funds.
In cases such as this one, it's possible to divert some funds
to deal with the consequences of the flooding.
Thank you. Kaja Kobetič of POP TV has a question via Zoom.
Hello. The third question will be very similar.
I'd like to ask you for a rough estimate of the funds
that Slovenia can look forward to, so we know
what extent we're talking about.
My reply to this question depends on the damage estimate.
Based on that estimate and Slovenia's request,
the Commission will draft an aid proposal.
But I repeat, the Solidarity Fund is just one of several
potential sources of aid for Slovenia.
The others include the European Civil Protection Pool,
which doesn't provide financial aid, but equipment and personnel
when the state determines that such aid is needed.
There are other sources as well. Most of the funding is available
from existing sources: cohesion funds,
the Regional Development Fund,
and the Recovery and Resilience Facility.
Substantial funds can be redirected from these sources
to deal with the consequences of today's flooding.
Thank you. I wish you plenty of success.
We're now joined by Environment Minister
Uroš Brežan because the government approved wide-ranging
emergency legislation to help people who were left
without everything as soon as possible.
Minister, please tell us what the government approved.
Hello. Today, the government approved changes
to the Natural Disaster Recovery Act.
Three elements need to be emphasized.
We're considering the distribution of advance payments
to affected municipalities for urgent repairs
up to 20% of the assessed damage.
This will speed up the distribution of advance payments
even before the damage estimates
and damage repair programs are completed.
Furthermore, an amendment to the Natural Disaster Recovery Act
will enable compensation for damage in agriculture.
The amendment expands the eligibility
of compensation covered by insurance
and enables 100% compensation for crop damage
based on the de minimis principle.
It's also significant that this damage
will be addressed according to the principle of retroactivity.
This applies to damage that occurred this year,
since January 1, 2023.
It seems that the Parliament could take this up soon.
Do you have any information regarding that?
That's right. Apparently, we'll send this bill to the National Assembly
early next week, which means
that the bill will be taken up on a priority basis,
also in the week ahead.
Thank you very much. Do we have any questions here?
Kaja Kobetič, who is the only one joining us remotely?
No. In that case, I'd like to thank you, Minister.
I hope your day and the day of all crews on the ground is peaceful.
You can find all the important and relevant information
on gov.si, where we'll keep you up to date.
I wish you all a successful and peaceful day. Goodbye.