Once all the sunken German ships are dredged up, the Danube’s width will increase from 90 to 200 meters

The first ship from the Black Sea Fleet that the Germans sank near Prahovo has been dredged up from the Danube. Aleksandar Banjac from the Ministry of Construction, Transport and Infrastructure of Serbia, pointed out that the procedure of dredging up the ship had taken three days and that the width of the Danube in that section would increase from 90 to 200 meters once all the ships were dredged up.

Banjac said that dredging up the ships was a very demanding endeavor and that the first one had been dredged up after eight decades.

– Our plan is to continue dredging up the remaining ships so as to reach the full capacity of the Danube and enable a safe navigation – said Banjac.

As he clarified, when it comes to the first ship that has been dredged up, the procedure entailed the use of cranes and special ropes to tie the ship and pull it up to the surface, where it was fully cleaned from the sludge and the layers that have accumulated over the years.

– When it was cleaned from those layers, the ship itself was explored and various cases full of ammunition and unexploded bombs were found – explained Banjac.

He pointed out that it was an extremely risky procedure and that various teams had been involved in it – divers, engineers, sailors, shipbuilders and locksmiths, and that they all had great knowledge and all the necessary certificates for safe work.

Banjac noted that it was assumed that all the ships were full of explosive devices and that the contract envisaged the dredging up of 21 ships.

He reminded that the value of the agreement was EUR 31.5 million and that EUR 16 million had been provided by the European Union, whereas EUR 15.5 million had been secured through a loan from the European Investment Bank.

Banjac pointed out that the plan was to dredge up the ships until 2028, when the width of the Danube in that section would increase to 200 meters, thereby largely improving the navigability.

Ministarstvo građevinarstva, saobraćaja i infrastrukture Republike Srbije

Evropska investiciona banka EIB

Aleksandar Banjac

dredging up of sunken ships from the Danube