Severe flooding in central Europe has severely disrupted essential services and caused thousands of people to be evacuated from their homes.

In Hungary the authorities issued a flood alert on the River Tisza Tissa and warned nearly forty-thousand people in the north-east of the country to be prepared for evacuation.

The prime minister, Viktor Orban, cancelled a visit to Sweden in order to visit the region.Thousands of people in Ukraine and Romania have been affected by flooding along stretches of the River Tisza.

Rescue teams in Slovenia were sent to help thousands of people stranded in the Celje region where water up to half a metre high flowed through the streets.