Photo: Digi24.ro
According to Romanian emergency services, as reported by Reuters, Bucharest alone received about 2,000 calls for help in a short period of time. Torrential rains and squalls flooded streets and several metro stations, toppled trees, and damaged cars and power lines. Emergency services worked around the clock to address the aftermath of the storm and ensure residents’ safety.
Outside the capital, the storm’s effects were reported in more than 60 cities and villages. One person died after strong winds caused a tree to fall onto a car. In several areas, firefighters and police evacuated residents from flooded homes, cleared roads of fallen trees, and dealt with the aftermath of the storm.
The bad weather came as a sharp contrast to the extreme heat that had gripped the country earlier in the week. On Monday and Tuesday, temperatures in some regions of Romania exceeded +40 °C, leading to record-high electricity consumption for this time of year. The increased strain on the power grid was accompanied by rising electricity prices on the regional market.
Meteorologists note that the combination of prolonged periods of intense heat with heavy downpours and squalls is becoming increasingly typical of the summer season in Southeast Europe, where weather extremes have been intensifying in recent years.
