Storm winds cause damage and power outages in northern Estonia
A brief but fierce storm that swept over the western Estonian islands, Lääne and Harju counties late on Sunday damaged buildings and vehicles and left thousands of households without power heading into Monday. The Rescue Board has responded to 71 calls, mainly concerning fallen trees on roads.
"Roofs ripped off, fallen trees, damaged powerlines and cars etc. Blast winds did a fair bit of damage in more than a few places," synoptist Kairo Kiitsak wrote on social media.
A squall line of thunderstorms, strong winds and showers reached Lääne and Harju counties from the Baltic Sea a little past midnight.
Wind speeds were measured at 26.2 meters per second in Hiiumaa and 25.3 m/s in Paldiski. The storm peaked at 23.31 p.m. when 6,674 Elektrilevi customers were without power.
By 8.40 a.m. on Monday, there were 19 outages and 3,065 customers without power. Elektrilevi teams fixed 21 medium voltage outages and restored power to 7,500 customers on Sunday night.
"We are assembling new brigades right now (9.30 a.m.), but because wind speeds are still around 20 meters per second in Harju County and forecast to reach elsewhere, safety remains a concern for the teams restoring power. Additional people have been called in to our operations center so we can restore power to customers as quickly as possible," said Hardi Puusepp, head of Elektrilevi's command center.
Spokespeople for the Rescue Board said that most calls since 10 p.m. on Sunday have concerned trees fallen on roads or powerlines. A few vehicles have also been damaged, in Haapsalu, for example.
The Rescue Board had received 71 calls by 6.39 a.m. on Monday, most coming from Harju and Lääne counties.
Forecasts suggest the winds should die down around noon.
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Editor: Marcus Turovski
