Claims were pouring into insurance companies after a wild and windy weekend over most of Southern Norway. Roofing was torn off buildings, trees were torn down and even the control tower at the airport in Stavanger was damaged, forcing closure of the air space between between Bergen and Stavanger.
“I came outside and found my car buried by the roof of a building,” Stavanger resident Eirik Oliver told state broadcaster NRK. In the Øygården area west of Bergen, an entire outdoor glass building was swept away, while in Bergen itself a baptismal ceremony at Laskevåg Church was interruped and all celebrants evacuated after strong winds knocked the spire off the church’s tower. That could have had fatal consequences.
Norway’s west coast was hit hardest, with winds hitting hurricane force with resultant high waves from Lista north beyond Bergen. Stavanger shut down its entire harbour area from Saturday evening because of high waters and dangerous gusts, and one boat was swamped and sank inside the downtown harbour area of Vågen.
All residents were urged to remain indoors. Thousands of homes and businesses lost electricity. Most all ferry service was disrupted. Only one of the several highways connecting eastern and western Norway remained open, the E16 over Filefjell. All other mountain passes were closed by winds and the constant threat of avalanches and landslides.
The storm came just two weeks after the extreme weather system known as Gyda hit many of the same areas. This storm also swept through the UK and onward to Sweden, but winds were dying down Sunday afternoon.
newsinenglish.no staff
