Hailstorm wreaks havoc in Bucharest: Over 500 emergency responses
Some Romanian cities' landscape looks like the country has come under fire. However, a powerful hailstorm caused punctured car windows and damaged house walls. Strong storms passing over the country especially affected the capital city. Firefighters carried out over 500 interventions.
According to Polsat News, heavy rains blocked dozens of streets in Bucharest alone, and severe hail damaged several buildings.
Two Ro Alert notifications were sent to residents. The message informed residents to stay indoors, as weather conditions could be dangerous.
Meteorological warning for medium to possibly large-sized hail, gusty winds exceeding 70-90 km/h, frequent lightning, and heavy rains. Duration: 10:20 PM-11:30 PM GMT - read one of the notifications.
Storms in Romania. Flooded shops, paralyzed airport
From Thursday night to Friday morning, firefighters participated in 504 interventions, of which 427 took place in Bucharest.
104 trees and seven power poles were destroyed. 127 streets, 229 houses and households, and 97 cars were damaged. Some vehicles were almost destroyed by hail that dented hoods and shattered windows upon impact. Building facades and roofs were also damaged by the storm.
Storms and heavy rains have temporarily paralyzed work at Bucharest-Otopeni airport. Some flights have had to be diverted to Bulgaria.
Huge storms also swept over the city of Cluj-Napoca in the northwestern part of Romania. Under the weight of a large amount of rain, the roof of a shopping centre collapsed, flooding the shops.
