More Than Dozen Killed as Europe Faces Storm (Worthy News Radio)
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent Worthy News
CAMPI BISENZIO /BUDAPEST (Worthy News) – Europe was struggling Saturday after being hit by a deadly storm that also saw flooding, leaving at least 15 people dead, including in Italy, where some areas recorded their worst rainfall in 100 years. And another storm was to hit Europe on Saturday.
In the town of Campi Bisenzio, north of Florence in Italy’s devastated Tuscany region, people hope to rebuild.
It won’t be easy.
Tuscany Governor Eugenio Giani explained that at least six people were confirmed dead and two missing here in Storm Ciarán, which he said “dumped an amount of rainfall not recorded in the last 100 years.”
A Campi Bisenzio resident was shocked at what he saw. “I looked out and saw the water coming down like a river. There was nothing to stop it, not even sandbags. It hit us all of a sudden,” he recalled, as people tried to find belongings nearby.
And, with 300 million euros ($322 million) worth of damage, thousands without power, and teams of firefighters continuing to intervene, the rebuilding has just begun.
The storm also hit other parts of Europe, including France, where winds of 207 kilometers per hour (129 miles per hour) were recorded on the northwest coast. The storm also lashed southern England, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Germany, as well as the Atlantic coast of Spain and Portugal.
Two women and a man were killed off the coast of Portugal when their sailing boat capsized about 35 miles (56 kilometers) north of Lisbon in heavy seas.
MORE DEATH, DESTRUCTION
Authorities said the storm also claimed at least four lives elsewhere in Western Europe, including two in France and a further two in Belgium.
In France, a truck driver was killed after being hit by a falling branch, while a 70-year-old man died in Le Havre after falling while attempting to close his balcony shutters, officials said.
In neighboring Belgium, a 65-year-old woman and a 5-year-old child were reportedly killed in the city of Ghent after being hit by branches in two separate incidents.
Eventually, the storm brought more death and destruction as it moved eastward across the continent. In Albania, police said a motorist died when he lost control while driving a car, which slid and hit barriers. Many roads in the country were flooded, including in the capital, Tirana.
With the worst of Storm Ciarán now over, Storm Domingos is moving across the Atlantic and was expected to slam into Europe on Saturday.
The worst of Domingos was to hit northern Spain and western France along the Bay of Biscay, where gusts in excess of nearly 100 kilometers per hour (60 miles per hour) were expected in addition to heavy rain.
There has been debate among experts and others about whether climate change is to blame for the weather phenomena hitting Europe. But whatever the reason, Europe will face more challenging days.
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