Croatian soldiers were setting up a temporary bridge in Lacja Vas, Slovenia on Tuesday after floods destroyed the old one last month.

Forty soldiers were setting up the bridge across the Dreta in the village northeast of Ljubljana which will provide a link to other parts of the country.

This was the first time the Croatian Army was setting up a Bailey M-1 bridge outside Croatia and its third mission to Slovenia since disastrous floods which claimed six lives and caused €5 billion worth of damage early in August.

“We had the opportunity to help Slovenia from the start,” Croatian Defence Minister Mario Banozic said visiting the construction site. “We also built barriers to minimise flood damage. By setting up the bridge, we are helping Slovenia ensure passage for the population.”

He was welcomed by Slovenian Defence Minister Marjan Sarec, who thanked Croatia and its army for responding to Slovenia’s call for international assistance.

“A genuine thank you to the Croatian Army. It also helped us with a helicopter after we requested international assistance. We saw how important it is to have a capable army,” he said.

The bridge will be 27.43 metres long and 3.23 metres wide.

Croatian Army personnel returned from Slovenia in late August after spending 20 days helping in relief efforts in the municipalities of Ljubno, Nazarje, Luce and Recica and on the River Savinja, transferring soil and stone, building an embankment, removing mud, and clearing roads, parking lots and access to houses.

On 6 August, a Croatian Air Force helicopter transferred cement blocks for barriers to prevent the Mura river from flooding in Donja Bistra.