Experts tell how Odesa can prevent repeat of flood deaths

A repeat of the flooding of Odesa like the one that occurred on September 30 can only be avoided by completely reconstructing the city's entire stormwater system.

This opinion was expressed to the journalists of the Accents project by architect and urbanist David Pishchev.

He emphasized that the project would be expensive and complicated, but that simply cleaning the existing sewage system would not solve the problem.

"11:24 You could see that the flooding in the city center was not so severe because the city center is at an altitude, and the new districts, the Kyiv district, the Peresypskyi district, Peresyp is generally below sea level and, of course, it will be flooded. Therefore, we cannot solve this problem with cheap and simple methods. The only option is a full-fledged infrastructure project for complete reconstruction. The entire stormwater system. Yes, if we clean and repair the existing drains, the situation will get better. However, as far as I remember, Balkivska Street used to flood even with less heavy rain. We can repair what we have and make the situation a little better, but we need a new system that will take into account new residential complexes and new water flows. And our climate is changing, and the rains are becoming more intense but less frequent. Therefore, we need to rethink and redesign all this, and then the situation will be better," the expert said.

Кирило Бойко