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The storm caused damage, flooding, massive power outages, disruptions to transportation networks and mass evacuations of residents in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Romania.
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Storm Boris, which is affecting several countries in Central and Eastern Europe, has killed at least seven people, five of them in Romania and two each in Austria and Poland, according to local authorities. Four people are still missing in the Czech Republic.
The storm caused damage, flooding, massive power outages, disruptions to transportation networks and mass evacuations of residents in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Poland and Romania.
In Galati, a region in eastern Romania particularly affected by the bad weather, emergency services found a fifth victim on Sunday, after recovering four bodies on Saturday. “Following the phenomena that occurred in recent days in the area of Slobozia Conachi, another fatal victim was identified, bringing the total number of deaths to five,” they said in a statement.
Romanian Prime Minister Marcel Ciolacu visited the town of Slobozia Conachi in Galati on Sunday, accompanied by Interior Minister Slobozia Conachi and Senate President Nicolae Ciuca, news.ro reports. In addition to the fatalities, more than 5,000 homes were affected. Authorities set up two tent camps to accommodate the displaced, each with a capacity for 400 people.
In Austria, a state of disaster has been declared in Lower Austria due to an “extreme and unprecedented situation,” according to the crisis team set up by the authorities, quoted by public television ORF. A firefighter died during a rescue operation due to flooding.
Vienna today, as Central Europe is hit by rain and floods.
pic.twitter.com/UZFPEwccuq— John O’Brennan (@JohnOBrennan2) September 15, 2024
The rains have already caused power outages in several regions of the country, including the capital Vienna. “We are continuing to work on the issue to quickly restore the supply,” the power companies said.
In Poland, Prime Minister Donald Tusk confirmed the first death, by drowning, following the storm in the country, where some 1,600 people have been displaced and “many more” could be displaced. Tusk called on the population to comply “with evacuation orders immediately,” warning citizens who refuse to do so of endangering their own lives and those of rescue teams.
In the Czech Republic, the worst-affected regions are Moravia, Silesia and Olomouc, where more than 10,500 people have been evacuated and where further rain is expected on Monday, which will make the situation worse as the soil appears to have already reached its saturation level and will not be able to absorb any more water, said Environment Minister Petr Hladík, quoted by the Blesk newspaper. Meanwhile, Czech Interior Minister Vít Rakusan called on the population of the affected areas to prepare for evacuation.
???????????? | FLOOD EMERGENCY: CENTRAL EUROPE#Boris2024 #girl #ulewa #powodź #deszcz #Czech
MULTIPLE CITIES AFFECTED, VICTIMS REPORTED
– Date: September 15, 2024
– Affected areas: Central Europe, including #JeseníkCzech Republic
– Situation: Widespread flooding, multiple… pic.twitter.com/w8piPJ8mNq– Weather Monitor (@Weathermonitors) September 15, 2024
Police reported four people missing: three in a car that was swept into a river in the northeastern town of Lipova-Lazne and a man swept away by a stream in the southeast. Around 260,000 households are without electricity. Heavy rain began on Friday and is expected to last at least until Monday in the Czech Republic and Poland.
Meanwhile, in Slovakia, the rains also caused the water levels of the Kysuce, Myjava and Carpathian rivers to rise, where evacuations of localities are being carried out, with the help of the police, in the urban areas of Devínská Nová Ves and Kuchyna. There are also road closures in the capital Bratislava and in Záhorí.
Source: Observadora
