The Institute of Geosciences did not include Durrës in the flood risk map on January 5 and 6, as this region was also considered to have moderate rainfall in the meteorological forecasts. “This afternoon (Monday, 05) and tomorrow (Tuesday, 06) high-intensity rainfall is expected mainly in the north and south of the country. In the regions of Shkodër, Kukës, Lezhë, Vlorë and Gjirokastër, there may be rapid flooding of small mountain rivers and landslides. In urban areas, in these regions, localized flooding problems may occur, depending on the state of the sewerage system,” describes the IGJEUM, in the bulletin “on natural hazards”.
Flash flood
Durrës, quite suddenly on the evening of January 5th and on the 6th, was engulfed by massive floods, from the area of Porto-Romano, Ish-këneta, Spitalla, and over 80% of the urban area ended up under water.
“The rains had a high capacity and a long duration,” said the mayor of Durrës, Emiriana Sako, on the evening of January 6, while Defense Minister Pirro Vëngu justified the situation with the heavy rainfall. He said: “…since the early hours of the morning the meteorological situation in Durrës and Lezha has been quite intense, over 110 mm of rainfall in the Durrës area alone.”
Meteorologists give another figure, several times lower than the minister's statements. "Durres justifies yesterday's (note; date 6) water on the streets due to the high intensity of rainfall. There was somewhere around 23 mm in 15 minutes, which justifies the presence of water on the streets for this time, but does not justify the continuation of water on the streets. The water is not draining because something and someone has blocked it," said meteorologist Tanja Porja.
The quantity does not justify the flood
Durrës is a case in point. According to experts, the reasons for the major floods, especially in the two former areas of Këneta and Spitalla, are not related to the amount of high-intensity rainfall, but to the blockage of the two main drainage channels and the relocation of the new dam to a high elevation, which makes it impossible to withdraw water in quantity and time. Faktoje.al compared the annual rainfall data for Durrës and whether or not there were floods during periods of high rainfall intensity. Referring to the well-known meteorological service website www.weatherandclimate.eu, which collects statistical data for many cities from different countries in Europe, Durrës is not ranked among the regions with very high rainfall intensity.
In 2018, it turns out that on March 5 and 6, 2018, Durrës was hit by very heavy rainfall, recording 44 mm of rain in one day and a total of 175 mm of rain within this month.
There was flooding only in the urban area for several hours in various neighborhoods in Durrës, with water on the streets. The area of Spitalla and the former Këneta was not flooded, there were reports of water, but no damage to homes.
Also, in four months of 2024, especially in April-May and September-October, Durrës experienced high-intensity rainfall, causing temporary flooding in the urban area, while no damage or massive flooding was observed in Spitalë and the former Marsh.
From the comparison of data from 2028-2025, the floods in Durrës have changed. If previously there was water in the city on various streets for several hours, now in the recent floods a lot has changed and the reasons, according to experts, are related to both the incomplete functioning of the hydropower plant and the blockage of two drainage channels. Referring to the data, for several days in 2018, 2019 and 2024 there was much higher intensity rainfall than on January 5-6 and 7 of this year, but the floods were not massive.
conclusion
At the peak of the floods, on the evening of January 6, 2026, the Minister of Defense Pirro Vëngu and the Mayor of Durrës Emirjana Sako declared about exceptionally high rainfall capacity and intensity. We will classify their statements as untrue, based on the verification of official IGJEUM data and the positions of meteorologists on the intensity of rainfall, that on these dates the rainfall was of average intensity. /Faktoje.al/
