Video: Europe’s Drought Exposes WWII Ships, Prehistoric Stones, And Bombs

Long weeks of drought across Europe have observed water levels in lakes and rivers fall to levels only some may be able to remember, exposing treasures long submerged along with a few unwanted hazards.

In Spain, experiencing the worst drought experienced in decades, archaeologists have been delighted by the emergence of a prehistoric stone circle named the “Spanish Stonehenge” that’s typically covered by the waters of a dam.

Video Credits: ABC News

Popularly referred to as the Dolmen of Guadalperal, the stone circle today sits in the corner of the Valdecanas reservoir, exposed, in Caceres’ central province, where relevant authorities mention that the water level has lowered to 28% of the total capacity.

In 1926, it was discovered by Hugo Obermaier, a German archaeologist, but the area was flooded in 1963 in a rural development assignment following the dictatorship of Francisco Franco. It’s since that time that it has become visible four times.

In Germany, the memories of earlier droughts have been rekindled by the re-emergence of the “hunger stones” along the Rhine. Many of these stones were discovered along the banks of the largest river of Germany over the past few weeks.

Bearing dates and individuals’ initials, their reemergence is observed by some as a threat and reminder of the hardships individuals encountered during the former droughts. The dates are visible on the stones in Worms, south of Frankfurt, and Rheindorf close to Leverkusen, including 2018, 2003, 1959, and 1947.

The Danube, another mighty river of Europe, has fallen to one of its lowest levels in nearly a century due to the drought, exposing hulks of over 20 German warships reportedly sunk in World War II close to Prahovo, which is Serbia’s river port town.

The vessels were among the hundreds that were scuttled all along the Danube by the Black Sea fleet of Nazi Germany in 1944 as they retreated from Soviet forces and still impacted river traffic during low levels of water.

Italy has announced a state of emergency for the locations around River Po, and sometime around late July, a 450-kg World War II bomb that was previously submerged was found in the low-running waters of the longest river in the country.

Almost 3,000 individuals who live near the village of Borgo Virgilio, near Mantua, had to be evacuated while military specialists defused and carried out a controlled explosion of the US-manufactured device at the beginning of this month.

References: The Times Of Israel, Aljazeera

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Source: Maritime Shipping News