At Lake Velence, around 40 kilometres west of Budapest, metal steps that once led down to the shoreline now just hit sand. The water’s edge is several metres away.
According to Pál Árpád Eötvös, mayor of the town of Gárdony that lies on the shores of the lake, the waterbody was within just 10 centimetres of its lowest recorded level at the end of May.
Experts suggest that this threshold could be reached as early as mid-June, reports local news site Daily News Hungary.
The dire situation has arisen from prolonged droughts, lack of rainfall and decades of water mismanagement – and it’s putting the area’s ecosystem and tourism industry at risk.
Hungary’s third-largest lake is disappearing
