Romania breaches Danube dike to save villages from flooding

ROMANIA breached a major dike to divert floodwater threatening villages in the Danube delta, while Hungary evacuated thousands of people as swollen rivers spread havoc across eastern Europe yesterday.

Almost 8,000 people have fled their homes in the Balkans. Further north in Hungary, authorities evacuated 4,500 more from three towns near the confluence of the Tisza and Koros rivers.

Authorities in Romania, the worst-hit country, tore a 40-metre gap in a dike on its coast to let Danube waters - swollen by heavy rains and melting snow - flow into the Black Sea.