Križnica Faces Complete Isolation Due to Low Drava River Levels
Croatia's only inland island has been almost completely cut off from the rest of the country for two weeks, with the ferry across the Drava operating only in emergencies.
Croatia's only inland island has been almost completely cut off from the rest of the country for two weeks, with the ferry across the Drava operating only in emergencies.
Križnica, Croatia's only inland island located near Pitomača along the border with Hungary, has been almost completely cut off from the rest of the country for the past two weeks. Their most vital connection to the mainland, the ferry across the Drava River, is now operating only in emergencies and exclusively for residents due to low water levels, as reported by HRT Magazine.
Zdravko Paša, director of the municipal utility company "Komunalno" from Pitomača, explains that the situation is at a breaking point. "We're not far off in terms of water level; 30 centimeters would be enough, but we don't have it. The water level practically fluctuates by 30 to 40 centimeters daily, depending on the discharge from hydroelectric plants upstream on the Drava," Paša told HRT Magazine.
The irony is even greater because residents have always feared the opposite extreme. Three years ago, when the Drava reached its historic maximum, the Križnička obala could only be reached by boat, and the current difference compared to that time is as much as seven meters. Back then, the ferry had to be tied up, and now it's in the same position because it almost touches the riverbed.
Ferryman Željko Mirović, who swapped his Zagreb address for Križnica thirty years ago, testifies to this unusual occurrence. "We've never had problems with low water; the problem was always high water. But this year, if a slightly heavier load runs the ferry aground or a slightly lower car scrapes the bottom, we have a hundred problems we never had before," Mirović noted.
Despite the challenges, he says that life on the island is a matter of adaptation. "That's life on an island. You simply come here and have to be aware of what awaits you. You adapt to it, and then everything is fine," he added.
Križnica began building its tourism story thanks to its untouched nature, and the Fabčić family had a restaurant there even before the new Visitor Center. Today, they run a family farm with rooms and a picnic area, but when the river shows its temperament, the question of survival arises.
"One day you make 20 euros in revenue, and then the Tax Administration thinks: what's this, no people? But there's no one; nobody comes. How can they come when the ferry isn't running," says Ruža Fabčić, owner of the family farm and restaurant.
Farmers are no better off. Senka Čor and her family cultivate an area of forty hectares, and all their products must be transported across the river. Without the ferryman, they would be completely helpless. "They went out of their way to help us save our produce, harvest the goods, and transport them where needed. So far, we've transported 25 tons of watermelons and 80 tons of cantaloupes," stated Senka Čor from Križnica.
Residents are now eagerly awaiting the Drava's water level to rise, and many dream of a bridge that would replace the current pedestrian ferry and permanently solve the problem of isolation.
