Heavy Snow Causes Chaos in Romania
Severe weather, including heavy snow and blizzards, has caused significant transport disruptions in Bucharest, Romania. Flights at the capital's airport were halted and road traffic was severely impacted. The severe weather is part of a broader pattern affecting Europe, with the UK seeing a warming trend while Ireland faces thunderstorms.
- The capital, Bucharest, received 40-50 cm of snow, significantly exceeding the monthly average of 11 cm. - Romania's National Meteorological Administration issued Orange and Red Code warnings for the severe blizzard, the highest alert levels. - The weight of the snow caused hundreds of trees and numerous power lines to collapse, which left approximately 200,000 households without electricity. - Emergency crews in the capital and surrounding Ilfov county performed hundreds of interventions to remove fallen trees and clear debris, which had damaged at least 40 vehicles. - At Bucharest's Henri Coandă International Airport, 58 snow-removal vehicles worked continuously on the runways, but several flights were still cancelled or diverted to other airports in cities like Sofia and Athens. - The severe weather prompted widespread school closures in Bucharest and several other counties in the southern and eastern parts of the country. - In addition to air and road traffic, rail services were also hit with delays of up to six hours due to the extreme weather conditions. - The storm system is part of a larger European weather pattern that has also seen Storms Nils and Pedro bring record-breaking wet conditions and flooding to parts of France.
