Heavy Snowfalls in Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova Kill One Person and Cut Power to Hundreds of Towns
Heavy snowfalls and blizzards in Romania and Moldova on Sunday led to the death of one person and power outages in hundreds of settlements. National roads were also closed. This was reported by the Associated Press with reference to local authorities.
A 40-year-old man died in Moldova due to bad weather. It happened on Sunday after his car drove off the road and crashed into a tree, according to the National Police of Moldova. It added that six accidents were registered around noon.
"We repeatedly urge drivers not to take to the road with unequipped cars and to drive at low speeds," the Moldovan police said in a statement.
Romania has issued red meteorological warnings in the eastern counties of Constanta, Tulcea, Galati and Braila, where wind speeds are forecast to reach 100 km/h, the National Meteorological Office reports.
Romania's Energy Minister Sebastian Burduja said on Sunday that more than 400 settlements were affected by power outages.
The Emergency Service reported that both national and local roads were closed in four counties on Sunday. Officials in Constanta and Braila counties reported that at least 69 settlements were without electricity, but that crews were sent to fix the problems. In other parts of Romania, less severe weather warnings were issued.
In neighbouring Bulgaria, powerful winter storms also brought heavy snowfall and forced the government to declare a state of emergency in large parts of the country on Sunday. According to Prime Minister Nikolai Denkov, more than 1,000 settlements, mostly in northeastern Bulgaria, were left without power on Sunday.
In Bulgaria, two people were killed and 36 injured in road accidents over the past day. Strong winds also closed roads, causing accidents and travel delays, as well as downing trees and power lines, Denkov said.
In Ukraine, the blizzard blocked traffic on 14 roads, and rescuers, police and other units towed 840 cars, reports Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko.
The Ukrainian Hydrometeorological Centre forecasts dangerous meteorological phenomena in Kyiv region for 27 November. North-westerly wind gusts, blizzards and heavy snow are expected.