Romania is faced with bad weather
A yellow code alert for unstable weather has been in place in more than half of Romania in recent days.
România Internațional, 08.05.2019, 13:44
In recent days, Romania has been hit by storms, torrential rain, hail and even blizzards in the mountains. A yellow code alert was in place in more than half of the country, warning of highly unstable weather and snow in the mountainous areas. Hydrologists also issued an orange code alert for flash floods in the centre and west and an yellow code alert for flooding in the north-west and east. Moreover, the weather has been cold for this time of the year, with highs of only 16 degrees Celsius. The authorities have begun to assess the damage caused by bad weather, which unfortunately also led to the loss of human lives.
According to the latest toll of the General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations, hundreds of homes were flooded, several thousands hectares of farmland, orchards and vegetable gardens were destroyed by hail, local and country roads were flooded and electricity black-outs were reported in some places. A number of villages in Calarasi county, in the south, were most severely affected, with a red code alert being in place for a few hours for strong winds, torrential rain and hail. The locals say they have never seen anything like it. Last week, also in Calarasi, a tornado of medium-intensity, an extremely rare phenomenon in Romania, uprooted trees and tore the roofs of dozens of houses. A bus was overturned and thrown into a nearby field. 39 people were in mortal danger. Fortunately, no one died. 12 people were, however, injured.
The interior ministry says it has deployed 15,000 fire fighters and police forces and gendarmes to remove the effects of the latest episode of bad weather. A number of people have been evacuated from areas at imminent risk of flooding. The fire fighters have assisted the local population and the authorities to pump the water out of the flooded basements of public institutions and private homes and to remove the trees and electricity poles felled by the wind.
Weather forecasts bring some good news for the days to come. The weather begins to improve on Wednesday, including in terms of temperatures. In another development, the minister of agriculture and rural development Petre Daea has announced that an investment programme will be launched next year to expand the hail protection system in the south of the country.
