Macedonia declares emergency after flooding kills 21

Meteorologists said more torrential rain and strong winds were expected later in the day

Macedonia's government declared a state of emergency today in parts of the capital hit by torrential rain and floods that left at least 21 people dead, six missing and dozens injured, authorities said.

Police and army helicopters searched for the missing and evacuated hundreds from the flood zone.

Mayor Koce Trajanovski described the damage as "the worst Skopje has ever seen." He said that the deadly deluge created hazardous rainfall accumulations within only 20 minutes.

"It was like a water bomb has fallen!" he said.

Many witnesses have described that victims drowned after being trapped in their houses when torrents suddenly swept through the area.

The heavy rain, strong winds and thunderstorms struck Skopje and its northern suburbs late yesterday. Special police, army units and firefighters were sent to the worst-hit areas as well as the nearby villages of Stajkovci, Cento, Aracinovo and Smiljkovci.

Government spokesman Aleksandar Gjorgiev told The Associated Press a state of emergency had been declared for two weeks in the most affected areas.

Hundreds of homes and vehicles were destroyed by the floods, roads were impassable and several areas were without electricity. Authorities said more than 1,000 people had been evacuated so far.

Skopje's city council held an emergency session and decided to provide financial help to victims' families, giving 180,000 denars (3,000 euros) to each. Authorities said they will open shelters for people from affected areas.

After a meeting of the National Crisis Management Center, Health Minister Nikola Todorov said many of the injured had fractures and contusions.

Meteorologists said more torrential rain and strong winds were expected later today.

Authorities said at least 5,000 people would need urgently food and water. They urged people to stay at home and to only drink bottled water.

Further north in Croatia, stormy winds have disrupted road and sea traffic at the height of the tourist season. The state news agency HINA says parts of the main highway connecting the capital of Zagreb with the Adriatic coast remained closed today.

Only cars were allowed down the sections of a highway and a regional road further north near the port of Rijeka.

Disruptions created by the bad weather have created traffic backups, with many tourists trying to reach Croatia's coastal resorts along the Adriatic Sea.