The State Fire and Rescue Service received a call at 12:55 to Akropole Alfa, where a partial collapse of a dropped ceiling was registered.
Representatives of the mall said in a release later that an internal rainwater drainage pipe got damaged in the heavy rainfall. As a result of the damage, the dropped ceiling above the Douglas shop got flooded and partially collapsed. Automatic sprinklers also went haywire as a result of the damage, contributing to even more water being poured inside the shop.
Shoppers and staff were immediately evacuated, and there is no information that anyone has suffered.
Eyewitnesses also recorded the event on social media.
Akropole Alfa evakuācija. Laikam kaut kas nopietns, dūmus neredz, bet ir 5 Ugunsdzēsēju mašīnas un 2 ātrie arī 😬 pic.twitter.com/J0RuTKXNeI
— Miks (@M_Krenbergs) July 1, 2024
Archives from Latvian Television show that the same thing happened at the same shopping mall less than a year ago, also due to heavy rainfall.
Rainfall in Riga has reached nearly a third of the July norm in the middle of the day. It also rained heavily in many parts of the central and eastern parts of the country. Rains of similar magnitude affected much of Vidzeme.
During heavy rains in Riga, streets where the rainwater drainage system has not been built or has not yet been restored are flooded. Puddles, for example, tend to form in places like Viestura Prospekts, the intersection of Kartupeļu and Mālu Street, on separate streets in Bolderaja and Čiekurkalns and elsewhere.
Due to the rains, the movement of public transport, especially trams, was also temporarily affected.
