Torrential rains, affecting parts of northern Europe, have flooded houses, flooded rivers and left thousands evacuated in southern Norway.
Overflowing rivers and flooded towns. These are some of the devastating effects of torrential rain in southern Norway.
The storm, which affects a large part of northern Europe, has forced the evacuation of thousands of people in this region of the Scandinavian country. Authorities have blocked dozens of highways, national highways and train lines and are using helicopters to help rescue efforts.
The Norwegian Prime Minister, Jonas Gahr Store, has described the situation as very serious and the Governor of Innlandet County, Aud Hove, warns of the risk that emergency services will not reach people who need help.
Landslides and floods have partially burst a dam on the Glåma River, Norway’s longest and mightiest. The dam’s generators stopped working early Wednesday after a power grid failure.
The authorities have explained that the automatic system that should have opened the gates to release water failed, causing serious damage to the plant. For the moment, the storm, baptized as Hans, has not left fatalities.
The red meteorological alert declared in several Norwegian counties is also maintained in some area of neighboring southern Sweden, although the situation has improved compared to Tuesday.
The heavy rains had caused the derailment of a train between Iggesund and Hudiksvall on Monday, although there were only three minor injuries, and yesterday the water supply in Gothenburg (the second Swedish city) was partially closed when the Göta river overflowed.
Bad weather in northern Europe has so far caused two fatalities in Lithuania, where a woman died from a falling tree, and in eastern Latvia, where a man died from injuries sustained in similar circumstances
