The weather conditions prevailing in the Zagreb area today and over the weekend could cause a sudden rise in groundwater levels. This could activate some of the numerous landslides on the slopes of Medvednica, experts warn.
The cause is not only the recently fallen rain, which measured slightly over 10 liters per square meter during this morning and early afternoon, but also the melting of snow due to warming in the atmosphere at higher altitudes, said meteorologist Krunoslav Mikec. The snow cover at the top of the Zagreb Mountain was still over 60 cm yesterday, and this morning it decreased to 41 cm. With the continued trend of warming caused by rain and an increase in air temperature of more than 5°C, a complete disappearance of snow is to be expected in the coming days, which will certainly increase groundwater supplies in the wider area of the city of Zagreb, emphasizes Mikec.
Groundwater, in turn, could activate some of the numerous landslides in Zagreb, of which there are about 900 just on the slopes of Medvednica. Only a small portion of them has been stabilized, and some are still inactive. No one dares to predict when and where a landslide might be activated. There is no map of landslides in the foothill area. Currently, there are about 1500 construction sites open in Zagreb. The number of those near landslides, which are most endangered by rising groundwater, is unknown, it was reported in HRT news.
