Up to a foot of rain fell across parts of the Balkans this weekend, creating the worst flooding the region has seen in centuries. As if that's not bad enough, the flooding and landslides are unearthing some of the hundreds of thousands of landmines planted in the ground during the Yugoslav Wars of the 1990s.

Russia's ITAR-TASS News Agency reports that over 500,000 people in Bosnia and Herzegovina live in the area where, to this day, around 220,000 landmines are still buried in the earth.

The Associated Press reports that the floodwaters could carry the landmines downstream and pose serious problems for Croatia and Serbia.

The unearthing of mines in Bosnia could create an international problem as flood waters carry the weapons downstream. Bosnia's tributaries feed the Sava River, which runs along the Croatia border and meets the Danube in Serbia. The Danube then flows through Bulgaria and Romania into the Black Sea.

Experts warn that mines could travel through half of southeast Europe or get stuck in the turbines of a hydroelectric dam.

"We will work with Croatia and Serbia on the problem," Obradovic said.

The weather will cooperate with recovery efforts across the Balkans over the next week or so, with Sarajevo expecting clear skies with no rain until next Monday, according to Wunderground.

[Image via AP]

You can follow The Vane on Facebook (and the author on Twitter).