Britain, parts of Europe hit with Storm ‘Ciara’

LONDON: Parts of Northern Europe and the United Kingdom are currently facing hurricane-level winds which are battering the region. The National Weather agency of UK has termed the hurricane as storm Ciara which is expected to bring winds with speed as high as 145 kmhr along with heavy rains. The storm is known as “Sabine” in Germany. The UK agency has issued 123 emergency flood warnings and 159 flood watch alerts across the country.

As a result of the storm, at least 10 British rail companies have issued “do not travel” warnings while trains of 20 other companies are expected to run late. Along with this, traffic was restricted at northern Britain’s iconic Humber Bridge near Hull. High speed trucks and camper vehicles were also banned. The number of flights leaving London’s Heathrow Airport have also been reduced owed to the heavy winds.

Ireland also estimated that 10,000 homes, farms and business had no power due to the storm. Their national weather agency also warned that the combination of high tides, high seas and stormy conditions will risk coastal flooding in the coming days.

Deutsche Bahn, Germany’s national railway operator, will be cancelling long distance trains to avoid risking the storm. A prominent sports match between Borussia Moenchengladbach and Cologne in the German Bundesliga was also called off.  

Across the Channel, Germany’s national railway operator, Deutsche Bahn, said it was cancelling long-distance trains to destinations most at risk from the storm, including Emden and Norddeich in Germany’s northwestern corner, the northern city of Kiel and the North Sea island of Sylt