2 Killed After Deadly Storm Strikes Bulgaria, Romania

Over the weekend, a severe storm wreaked havoc in Bulgaria and neighboring Romania, resulting in the tragic deaths of two individuals in Bulgaria.

The tempest, characterized by fierce winds, led to the uprooting of trees and widespread power outages along the Black Sea coast.

The Bulgarian police, in a statement on Sunday, reported the death of a 43-year-old woman in the eastern city of Varna. She was fatally injured on Saturday evening when a tree fell on her.

Additionally, two rescue workers were injured due to falling tree branches at the scene of the accident.

Earlier in Sofia, a 65-year-old driver was killed when a tree fell on his car, critically injuring his wife, who was subsequently hospitalized.

On Sunday, the storm calmed in the capital, Sofia, but Eastern Bulgaria continued to face fierce winds exceeding 100 km/h and tumultuous seas with waves over five meters high.

Varna, a coastal city, announced a state of emergency in eight surrounding towns, urging residents to stay indoors.

Varna's Mayor Blagomir Kotsev reported widespread power outages throughout the city and obstructed traffic due to tons of fallen branches on the roads.

The situation was further exacerbated by snowfall in the country's northeast, with police receiving numerous calls from stranded drivers.

The inclement weather severely disrupted air travel and rail services. The same storm also struck neighboring Romania, forcing the closure of Black Sea ports.

The Romanian meteorological service issued a red alert, the highest level, for the cities of Constanta and Tulcea.

Tens of thousands of homes in Romania were left without electricity, and firefighters intervened to remove 140 fallen trees. Nearly forty vehicles were reported damaged.

Bulgaria has experienced several stormy weather conditions in recent weeks.

In early November, two men died, while at least twenty people were killed by a storm that struck Western Europe. In September, four people perished in floods.

Scientists point out that extreme weather events have become more frequent due to climate change, highlighting the increasing impact of environmental shifts on global weather patterns.