A deadly storm swept through Bucharest, Romania’s capital city, overnight into Wednesday, leaving one person dead and causing widespread flooding across 20 counties — all coming on the heels of a brutal heatwave that had gripped the region.
The intense storm impacted 60 communities throughout the country. According to Romania’s General Inspectorate for Emergency Situations, known as the IGSU, emergency crews had to pump standing water out of more than 350 homes and clear flooding from over 100 streets.
The areas hardest hit were Bucharest and the neighboring Ilfov County. In that area, one person lost their life after a falling tree crushed their vehicle. Emergency services fielded more than 2,200 calls for assistance, and additional rescue teams, trucks, water pumps, and chainsaws were brought in from other parts of the country to help manage the damage.
The IGSU reported that nearly 1,000 trees — 988 in total — came down during the storm, and 495 vehicles sustained damage.
Romania had been enduring a heatwave similar to what much of Europe experienced this week, with temperatures in some regions expected to climb above 40 degrees Celsius, or 104 degrees Fahrenheit.
On Wednesday, Romania’s National Meteorological Administration issued a warning that “atmospheric instability” would continue to bring heavy rains and thunderstorms to the western and southern regions of the country.
