At 5:00, the strongest wind gusts were observed in the center of Riga, where they reached 27 meters per second (m/s), 25 m/s in Dobele, 22 m/s in Ventspils, 21 m/s in Mērsrags, 20 m/s in Saldus and Ainaži.
Such wind gusts would cause only minor damage in winter, but in the summer, when trees are leafy, they are more exposed to wind and break more quickly.
Tens of thousands of households in Latvia were left without electricity.
According to operational information from Sadales tīkls, on Monday morning, at around 6:00, the power supply was disrupted for about 30,000 customers - mainly in the central districts of the country. The most widespread power outages were in Tukums, Jelgava and Dobele regions, followed by Ropaži, Mārupe and Olaine regions.
In Kalnciems, Jelgava region, 180 millimeters (mm) of rain have fallen since the rains started yesterday. This is the climatic norm for two months and 26% of the norm for the whole year.
The State Fire and Rescue Service (VUGD) operational duty officer Kārlis Broms told Latvian Television's "Morning Panorama" that the past night was a busy one.
By 6 am, the VUGD had received about 400 calls about wind damage.
Around 160 calls were received in the vicinity of Jūrmala, while around 100 calls were received around Tukums and Jelgava. Around 100 calls were also received in the capital.
"The damage is severe, there are a lot of trees down on cars, and firefighters even have to clean up five other events on the way to the scene," said Broms. He urged people to be patient while waiting for rescuers: "There was even a case today where firefighters had to cut branches along a 100-meter stretch."
By 11:00 on Monday, the VUGD had already received more than 850 calls, which is about twice as many as in the October storm last year, VUGD spokesperson Viktorija Gribuste told Latvian Radio. Most of the calls were made in Riga, as well as in Jūrmala and Zemgale.
The VUGD has no information about people injured in the storm, but during the night people called 112, frightened because tree branches fell on their cars or trees broke off right in front of their cars. When they arrived at the scene, the people had managed to get out of the vehicles on their own, Gribuste said.
Residents should expect to wait as priority will be given to calls where life or health is at risk. For lighter damage, residents are urged to repair the damage themselves.
Due to storm damage, traffic is difficult or closed on several sections of national roads on Monday morning, 29 July, the State Enterprise "Latvijas Valsts ceļi" (LVC) said.
The sections of main and regional roads affected by the storm damage are:
- Rīga (Skulte)-Liepāja (A9, km 27) near Kalķis;
- Rīga bypass (Salaspils-Babīte) (A5, km 10) near Kekava;
- Rīga-Sigulda-Estonia motorway (A2, km 56) near Sigulda from the direction of Augšlīgatne;
- Pūri-Auce-Grīvaiši motorway (P96, 35 km) in Bēne;
- Kandava-Saldus motorway (P109, km 23) near Zante;
- Riga-Ergļi motorway (P4 27 km) near Ropaži;
- Jelgava-Dobele-Annenieki motorway (P97 15 km) near Dorupe.
Drivers should expect that it will take time to recover from the storm and fully restore traffic. For all traffic restrictions due to storm damage, click here.
For information on washouts, fallen trees, and other storm damage and on national roads, LVC urges you to contact 80005555.
Heavy rain and strong winds will continue in many parts of Latvia until the afternoon.
North-north-westerly wind gusts will reach 25-30 meters per second at times along the coast of the Gulf of Riga, including Riga, until midday.
Precipitation, which has been extremely heavy in central Latvia so far, reaching unprecedented levels in the history of meteorological observations, will also continue to increase,
More widespread flooding of streets, roads, and fields is expected.
The strong winds will continue to raise water levels along the coast of the Gulf of Riga and the estuaries of rivers flowing into the Gulf, including the Daugava in Riga, may flood the lowest parts of its banks.
The Rīga City Council and other responsible authorities have urged people to consider not going outside their homes today as it may be dangerous or interfere with the work of rescue services.
The full calming of the storm is expected on Monday evening.
