Record-low water levels on the Danube River reveal Nazi warships and ancient mammoth bones
Drought conditions in Europe have pushed the Danube River to record-low water levels, exposing dozens of World War II German battleships and an ancient woolly mammoth. In Serbia, the receding water has revealed the rusty hulls of at least 20 warships from Nazi Germany's Black Sea fleet, which were deliberately scuttled in 1944 to slow Soviet advances. Simultaneously, in northern Bulgaria, the river's low water has unveiled the bones of a mammoth that lived during the Ice Age. Nikolay Nenov, director of the Regional Historical Museum, confirmed the discovery of a jawbone, tusks, and a femur, noting the bones are well-preserved and likely belonged to a single animal. Beyond historical relics, the drought is creating a practical energy crisis. In Hungary, Prime Minister Peter Magyar announced that the Paks Nuclear Power Plant will be shut down for weeks due to the lack of cooling water. The shrinking river is also disrupting shipping and tourism, with cargo ships forced to reduce loads to navigate the dangerous conditions.