Deaths and injuries in several countries
One person was killed and others injured in incidents related to severe storms that struck several countries in Northern Europe over the past two days, also causing power outages for more than 150,000 homes and disruptions to transport and telephone networks.
Agence France-Presse (AFP) quoted local sources in Scotland as saying that one person died after a tree fell on him in the southwest of the country, while strong winds caused another tree to fall in northern France, injuring a runner participating in a marathon.
Several wind-related incidents in the Belgian capital, Brussels, led to trees falling on pedestrians, injuring four people with varying degrees of severity.
Widespread power outages
Authorities in Britain, France, and Germany announced that the passage of storms "Boillou" and "Austin" 24 hours apart caused power outages for tens of thousands of homes.
Winds reaching speeds of 135 kilometers per hour were recorded in the Argyll and Bute area of western Scotland, and trees and power lines brought down by the storm closed roads and railway lines across Scotland and northern England.
French electricity distribution company "Enedis" announced that approximately 288,000 homes were without power when storm "Austin" intensified on Saturday, and around 59,000 homes remained without electricity on Sunday afternoon, mostly in the Normandy and Brittany regions.
The company stated that 2,600 technicians from its staff and contractors are working to restore power.
In Germany, "Austin" caused power outages for ten thousand homes in the city of Freiburg im Breisgau in the southwest and its surroundings on Sunday. The main hospital in the city announced that it was forced to limit its services to emergency cases due to the power outage, which also disrupted the mobile phone network.
Meanwhile, the British Energy Networks Association reported that more than 400,000 homes experienced power outages at various times during the two storms.
The British Meteorological Office warned that storm "Boillou" poses a threat to lives due to flying debris and rough waves, urging residents to stay indoors as much as possible, while the German Meteorological Service predicted continued strong winds, reaching speeds of 100 kilometers per hour along the northern coast.
Flight cancellations and climate impacts
Hundreds of flights were canceled or diverted to other airports due to storms across Northern Europe. Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam, one of the busiest European airports, canceled dozens of flights on Sunday. AFP recorded on the airport's website the cancellation of approximately 90 flights, mostly to European cities, including Paris, Rome, and Dublin.
Northern Ireland was affected by the storm, with several flights departing from Belfast canceled, and ferry crossings across the Irish Sea between Belfast and northwest England canceled.
Northern and Western European countries are recently facing the first autumn storms of the year with wind speeds reaching record levels, amid warnings of increasing extreme weather phenomena linked to global warming.
Source: Syrian Arab News Agency (SANA)
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