RIGA, Feb 22 (LETA) - Floods in western Latvian rivers are likely to reach the maximum already at the end of this week, Andris Viksna, forecasting head at the Latvian Environment, Geology and Meteorology Center, said at a news conference today. 

He indicated that already in the coming days air temperatures in western and central Latvia will climb to between 7 and 10 degrees centigrade, causing snow to melt quickly, which means that the flood season is about to begin at the weekend. 

Floods in the Venta river basin is expected to reach the maximum between February 26 and March 2, while in the Lielupe river basin floods are likely to peak from March 1 to 10. 

In other large basins of the Daugava and Gauja rivers floods are expected in the second part of March or early April, but that does not mean that there will be no ice movement before that. 

The most dangerous flood risks occur as the ice starts to move in the rivers forming huge congestions or sludge.