Heavy Snow and Blizzard in Romania

Hundreds of stranded cars and vehicles, blocking cleanup on roads and motorways, tens of small towns left without electricity, closed schools, desperate people- these are the defining elements of a picture caused by heavy snow falls in Romania at the weekend. Weather conditions seem slightly favourable, but only for a short period of time.

Valentin Țigău, 27.01.2014, 13:26

Hundreds of stranded cars and vehicles, blocking cleanup on roads and motorways, tens of small towns left without electricity, closed schools, desperate people- these are the defining elements of a picture caused by heavy snow falls in Romania at the weekend. Weather conditions seem slightly favourable, but only for a short period of time.

The code orange alert against blizzard has been extended until Monday evening in the Romanian southern and eastern counties of Constanta, Tulcea, Braila, Calarasi, Ialomita, Buzau, Vrancea and Galaţi, where gale force wind exceeded 70 km/h, reducing visibility and drifting snow. A yellow code alert has also been issued for the northeastern Romanian counties of Bacau, Vaslui and Iasi. For the first time ever in Romania, a red code alert against blizzard was issued on Sunday, in the counties of Buzau, Braila and Vrancea. The capital city, Bucharest was also severely affected by heavy snowfalls and blizzard at the weekend. At national level, unfavourable weather conditions have disrupted traffic on public roads and on the railways or rendered it extremely difficult.

All three highways and tens of national roads have been closed down, over 100 trains have been cancelled or reported considerable delays. Hundreds of heavy vehicle drivers had to stop their travels, waiting for better weather conditions. The authorities have repeatedly called on the population not to travel by car in the aforementioned areas, except for emergency situations. As usual in such situations, many gestures of human solidarity were reported, from the evacuation of old, ailing or sick people to the distribution of humanitarian aid in isolated rural communities.

A highly appreciated support was provided by the army, which dispatched over 200 military and the needed technique in the areas affected by blizzard. Taking into consideration a series of elements, among which heavy traffic, the government has decided to temporarily close down schools in 27 counties in the south, central and east, including the capital city, Bucharest.

In an effort to better manage the situation, Prime Minister Victor Ponta has convened several meetings of the decision makers in transportation and the administration, to establish and take the necessary measures in such situations. Considering that technical capacities turn out to be insufficient or inefficient this year, too, the politicians in opposition and a large part of the public opinion point the finger at the government, accusing it of poor management of the situation.

This winter, which brought along a low quality of precipitations over the past two months, might still create a lot of problems in Romania, with meteorologists warning that, after a short break, Romania will again be hit by heavy snow falls, as of Wednesday.