Bulgaria sees Danube water level fall below one metre, navigation continues

The water level of the Danube along the Bulgarian stretch has dropped to under one metre, with a fall of about 20 cm over the past week and a further 6 cm reported near the town of Lom, where the level stands at roughly 80 cm above the reference zero.

Engineer Toni Todorov, director of the River Supervision Directorate in Lom, said that despite the low water, there are no serious systemic problems for shipping; current traffic proceeds within normal limits when vessels are appropriately loaded and powered. Isolated incidents of vessels becoming stranded have been linked to human error – failure to obey water‑way signs, reliance on outdated navigation knowledge, and deviation from the marked channel.

Ferry services continue to run on schedule, and safe passages have been marked around the risky zones near the islands of Vardim and Belene. The decline is attributed to typical summer conditions, with reduced rainfall and weaker tributary inflows. Authorities are working to maintain the required depth along the channel, but expect the level to keep falling in the coming weeks.