Cyclone Nelson swept Romania. Dozens of trees and poles downed in Bucharest, an apocalyptic landscape near Craiova. At the mountain, the wind hit with the force of a hurricane

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Cyclone Nelson, which killed at least 11 people in Europe, rushed at 100 kilometers per hour over Romania. The capital was overturned by violent gusts. Several planes missed landing in Bucharest. In the city, people could barely stay on their feet. Dozens of trees and concrete pillars broke. The firefighters were assaulted with emergency calls. And a man, who did not manage to take shelter, arrived at the hospital in a coma. Since this morning, the wind has calmed down, except in the mountains where it will reach 90 kilometers per hour.

By the Observator editorial team on 04/03/2024, 08:19

Festive gusts brought danger of death to Bucharest. A surveillance camera captured the moment when a huge tree is blown to the ground by the wind, close to the Fire Gazebo. Two cars narrowly avoid the heavy trunk, but another is caught under the thick branches. Miraculously, no one was injured, but several parked cars were seriously damaged.

Reporter: How long did you leave the car here?

Owner: 20 minutes. I got a call, the tree fell on your car.

Vijelia also messed up public transport in Bucharest

And in the Dorobanti area, the storm knocked down a tree. The tree fell on a parked car, and now the owner plans to sue the City Hall. Vijelia also messed up public transport in Bucharest, at peak hours, and put hundreds of people at risk. A wind-blown tree fell just as a tram full of passengers was passing by.

Valentin Drăgan, vatman: I was walking and I saw the tree fall and I got scared, I heard a loud bang.

The luck of the travelers was that the tree remained hanging on the electricity wires and did not crush the wagon. Traffic was completely blocked for dozens of minutes. Other people narrowly missed death when a concrete pillar collapsed seconds before a trolleybus passed.

Storms wreaked havoc in Bucharest: over 130 trees were felled and 10 roofs were destroyed

Even the billboards did not withstand the onslaught of the wind. The damage balance shows how strong the gusts were. More than 130 trees were felled and 10 roofs were destroyed. And the people barely managed to stay on their feet.

And the storm brought trouble both on earth and in the air.

Andreea Milea, Observer reporter: The strong gusts uprooted trees and also confused air traffic. Several aircraft missed landing both at Otopeni Airport and Baneasa, so they flew over the runway for several minutes.

Apocalyptic landscape near Craiova: the strong wind lifted the ash from the thermal power plants

The extreme weather created an apocalyptic landscape near Craiova after it lifted the ash from the thermal power plants. Drivers drove almost blindly through clouds of dust.

The storm was stronger than any adhesive used in construction.

He simply peeled off several buildings.

Diana Speretoiu, Observer reporter: At Targu Jiu, the strong wind detached the decorative plaster from the facade of a block located in the city center and recently rehabilitated. Firefighters also intervened in the area to remove dangerous construction elements.

Where there were no crazy gusts, there were temperature differences of 18 degrees Celsius from one day to the next. The locals of Baia Mare changed to their winter clothes again.

Man in a coma after being hit by the structure of a solar building blown away by the wind

The merciless weather also made a victim in Vrancea. A 51-year-old man ended up in a coma at the hospital, hit by the wooden structure of a solar building blown away by the wind.

And in Buzau, no less than 6 dry vegetation fires broke out almost at the same time. The strong wind, which blew at more than 80 km/h, carried the sparks and intensified the commotion. The most difficult mission of the firemen was in the hills near the Mud Volcanoes.

These violent storms were brought by Cyclone Nelson, which crossed the continent from north to south. The whole country was covered with weather warnings.

The wind reached the speed of a hurricane, over 120 km/h

Gusts of up to 70 kilometers per hour swept half of the country – 22 counties under code yellow. They broke branches and raised enormous whirlwinds of dust.

There was a code orange warning in 18 other counties. The gusts reached 85 kilometers per hour, scared the locals and caused great damage. The worst was in the mountains. The wind reached the speed of a hurricane, over 120 kilometers per hour, and broke dozens of trees.

Since this morning, the wind has calmed down, except in the mountains where it will reach 90 kilometers per hour.

Cyclone Nelson caused many casualties in Europe. Three adults and two children died crushed by trees in southern Poland after the wind reached unusual speeds: 155 kilometers per hour.