Hungary activated IPCR crisis response mechanism

Hungary, as the president of the Council of the European Union, on Monday activated the EU’s integrated political crisis response (IPCR) mechanism, the minister in charge of EU affairs said.

János Bóka said on Facebook that the mechanism enabled central European member states severely affected by the extreme weather conditions and flooding to coordinate protection tasks.

He added that the affected member states could also decide how the EU can most effectively help them carry out their tasks.

The activation of the mechanism was needed because unprecedented severe weather conditions have resulted in extreme floods in several states including Austria, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania, Bóka said. Several of these countries have announced a state of emergency, he added.

A coordination centre will meet on Tuesday morning and its work will enable experts to monitor the flood situation and specify the support needed, and generally coordinate with EU institutions, Bóka said.

The Hungarian presidency is ready to activate the EU Civil Protection Mechanism if the member states express a need for it, he said.

As we wrote earlier, Orbán postpones all international trips, near-record flooding is expected, and a levee with 1,000 tonnes of rocks; details and photos are here.

Read here the latest articles about floods in Hungary.