The cars in this parking lot in Jurbarkas, in western Lithuania, are submerged and ruined by floodwater.

VILNIUS — Traffic is being diverted across Lithuania as flooding submerges roads, rendering them impassable and scores of villages are being evacuated.

The small Baltic state is in the grips of a flood caused by the quick melting snow and ice deposits that collected during the winter, which set records for its heavy snowfall and low temperatures. In the central and eastern part of the country residents are being evacuated, livestock lost and homes and vehicles ruined by floodwater. In some areas the water level has risen up to five meters.

The Lithuanian Roads Administration reported Friday that around 37 km of road in the country are impassable or unsafe due to flooding.

Multiple homes in Jurbarkas are underwater.

The depth of the flooding over the roads ranges from 25 to 90 cm, the administration reported. Flooding is most severe in the areas around Kaunas, Šilutė, Rusnė, Jurbarkas, Šilutė and Klaipėda.

It is unknown exactly when flooding will cease, as waterways are blocked by ice dams that are halting the flow of water toward the sea. The defense ministry reports that their forces are exploding the dams across the country to get water flowing again. No estimates on damage are available yet, although it could very well be in the millions of litai.

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