KEY BRIDGES TO GORNJA BRIJESNICA DAMAGED

DOBOJ, APRIL 10 /SRNA/ – Three bridges leading to Gornja Brijesnica, a Serb returnee village in the municipality of Lukavac, were damaged in recent severe weather and the local association expects authorities to respond positively to their request for repairs.

Member of the Gornja Brijesnica Association Lazo Tripunović told SRNA that the bridges were damaged in early April due to storms and flooding from the Brijesnica stream, which undermined their foundations. Representatives of the Lukavac City Administration visited the site together with members of the association to assess the damage. He added that returnees are taking all possible steps to repair this very important road connection in order to continue the restoration of Brijesnica. “We have organized ourselves to rebuild our destroyed homes in line with our capabilities and to ensure sustainable return and life,” Tripunović said. He noted that 12 years ago, an initiative by a group of enthusiasts to visit and clean the local cemetery evolved into the Brijesnica Homecoming Gathering and a traditional autumn field prayer, aimed at creating conditions for sustainable return. Tripunović pointed out that over the past three years they have managed to build an enclosed facility on the site of the demolished school and construct a bridge, now unfortunately damaged, funded by their own resources and with donor support. He stressed that neither natural disasters nor obstructions will deter them from their goal of restoring their homes. Before the war, 570 people lived in the Serb village of Gornja Brijesnica near Lukavac, which was completely destroyed after residents were expelled in 1995. To this day, conditions for sustainable return have not been ensured. For the first time in 29 years, in November 2023, a roof was installed on the still-devastated house of Radomir and Jadranka Nedić in the Matići hamlet, using their own funds. Other residents, including Ratomir Nikolić, brothers Mićo and Ljupko Petković and Miloš Kovačević, have also begun restoring their homes by building smaller structures on the ruins of former foundations.